Visalia mother accused of leaving daughter in hot car returns to court

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- Note: The video that aired on an ABC30 broadcast incorrectly stated that Mojica's preliminary hearing occurred three weeks after her daughter died. It was two weeks later.

Three-year-old Jessica Campos was found unresponsive in the backseat of her mother's car during a dangerous heat wave earlier this month.

Visalia Police say she had been there for two and a half to three hours while Eustajia Mojica worked on an illegal marijuana grow operation at her sister's house.

Visalia Police Officer Osvaldo Ramirez couldn't find a pulse for Jessica, and says an ambulance rushed her to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Just two weeks later, Mojica was in court for her preliminary hearing, listening to witness testimony through a Spanish interpreter.

Tulare County prosecutors have charged her with felony child abuse and involuntary manslaughter, among other crimes.

Pathologist John Morrison performed the autopsy on Jessica and said her cause of death was hyperthermia.

On Thursday, he also testified that an internal temperature of 107 degrees is generally considered deadly.

Jessica's temperature, according to Visalia Police, was at least a few degrees higher at the hospital.

The thermometer was unreadable-only reading up to 110 degrees.

Based on tests they conducted, police also believe the inside of Mojica's car may have reached a temperature of over 130 degrees.

Mojica faces ten years in prison.

Her preliminary hearing will continue on Friday.