JSO releases body camera footage, shares warning after woman’s car was stolen with her 19-month-old child inside

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 22-year-old man is facing multiple charges after police say he stole a vehicle that was left running with a 19-month-old inside, prompting a warning from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

Micah Simmons was arrested in January on charges of car theft, credit card theft, child abuse without great bodily harm, and “confinement of a child under 13 against its will without the consent of the guardian.”

According to JSO, the frightening incident began on Jan. 8 outside a CVS on Blanding Boulevard when a woman called 911 to report her car had been stolen with her child still inside.

She told police she left the sleeping child in the car with the engine running for less than 5 minutes, but when she came back outside, she realized her car was gone.

Officers said the woman was distraught, and body camera video from that night shows her sitting in the back of a police car with the door open, weeping and saying, “I don’t care about the car, I care about my [child].” (Watch: Press play above to watch the body camera video from that night)

JSO said the stolen car was found in less than 20 minutes, but the child was not inside.

Thankfully, witnesses had seen the child being left by the car thief at a gas station on Collins Road and called 911, police said.

According to Simmons’ arrest report, multiple witnesses saw him take the child out of the car, push the child to the ground in the parking lot and then speed off in the car.

The child, who suffered a scratch on the cheek, was reunited with its mother.

“While we do not justify Simmons’ actions and are working to ensure justice is served, this incident is an important reminder: never leave a running vehicle unattended,” JSO wrote in a statement Monday with the release of the body camera video." If you’re stepping away from your car even for a few minutes turn it off and take your keys with you."