Mysterious death after teen is unable to escape locked car

[King Ghidorah]

Police in California are investigating the mysterious death of a 14-year-old girl, who appears to have died after becoming trapped inside a car parked at her high school, unable to unlock the car’s doors.

Graciela Martinez, 14, was found dead in her brother’s BMW, parked in a lot at Madera South High School after school on Wednesday, police said. Graciela is believed to have fallen asleep in the car early that morning and then became trapped inside.

Found at the end of the school day, Graciela was slumped in the car’s back seat and drenched in sweat. Police believe the girl died from heat exhaustion.

Investigators with the Madera Police Department discovered that when locked from the outside, doors cannot be opened from inside the used 1997 BMW.

“It appears there may be a defective locking system on the car but we still need to do further tests to determine if that’s true and correct,” Det. Robert Salas told ABC News affiliate KFSN-TV.

Furthermore, Salas said, it appears the car’s horn did not work without a key in the ignition. Graciela had no food, water or a cellphone, according to police.

abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2013/09/girl-14-dies-mysteriously-in-locked-car-at-calif-high-school/

[The Peoples Elbow]

Why didn't she break the window with her foot and crawl out? If it was between life and death, who the hell cares about the car?

[Bootista]

That's really Sad. RIP

[Red Impact]

Sept 15, 2013 10:39:29 GMT -5 The Peoples Elbow said:

Why didn't she break the window with her foot and crawl out? If it was between life and death, who the hell cares about the car?

My guess, if it was accidental, was that she fell asleep in the car, it got hot, and she got heat stroke. Heat stroke causes confusion and significant muscle weakness/cramping. It's not unlikely that she couldn't think of it becaue her brain was all messed up or, if she did, that it was too late to do so. Car windows are made to be sturdy and not shatter when hit in the middle (it's a sheet of plastic between two pieces of glass) and require quite a bit of force to break if you don't have a proper tool. If they weren't rolled down at all it'd require more effort. So if someone is weak and dehydrated, such as from heat stroke, they may just not have the strength to do so.

[SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts]

It's not the easiest thing in the world to just break the window. A few years ago, a friend of my father's Grandmother and Granddaughter crashed into a river and couldn't get the door open. People watched them kick the windows but couldn't get through. Someone tried to throw a fire extinguisher at the back window but missed.

[Hawk Hart]

Why the f*** did her brother lock her in the car?

[SsnakeBite, the No1 Frenchman]

That... sounds fishy. I mean, even if she did get locked inside, you'd think someone would notice or she'd manage to break the windshield or something (although as Red Impact mentioned it wouldn't be easy, especially if she suffered a heat stroke).

What I find especially suspicious is that she fell asleep in the car and yet the person who drove her there never noticed. I'm not buying it.

[Young Game]

So. Many. Questions.

Who, in their right mind, designs a car that can essentially trap someone inside of it?

[Red Impact]

I'd also take into account that 14-year-old girls aren't generally body-builders. Car windows survive car crashes and being hit by people without shattering, so a kick from a 14-year-old probably isn't going to cut it for shattering one open. The tools for breaking them open tend to have points to provide intense pressure on a tiny area, not mild pressure on a larger area.

[Red Impact]

Sept 15, 2013 13:08:19 GMT -5 Young Game said:

So. Many. Questions.

Who, in their right mind, designs a car that can essentially trap someone inside of it?

The locking system was just defective on this particular car. That is probably something that should have been noticed and fixed though.

[SsnakeBite, the No1 Frenchman]

Sept 15, 2013 13:08:19 GMT -5 Young Game said:

So. Many. Questions.

Who, in their right mind, designs a car that can essentially trap someone inside of it?

If I understand the article correctly, it was a malfunction on this one car.

[Deleted]

This car sounds jacked up, the horn doesn't work without a key in the ignition!?

[SEAN CARLESS]

Was this song playing on the radio? Might explain a few things...