A man who was facing prison time for the death of his two-year-old daughter, who he left in a hot car while watching adult films, has passed away. The Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office in Arizona confirmed the death of Christopher Scholtes, 38, on Wednesday, with no cause of death provided.
Scholtes did not appear at a court hearing in Pima County Superior Court, scheduled before his sentencing on November 21. The Pima County Medical Examiner determined that the car’s interior temperature was approximately 43°C when emergency responders arrived, concluding that the child died due to heat exposure.
In October, Scholtes had reached an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to the second-degree murder of his daughter, Parker, in July 2024. He was facing a sentence of 20 to 30 years in prison and had been released on bail until the day of his scheduled custody on Wednesday.
After the hearing, prosecutors, visibly affected, mentioned they would share more information later that day. Scholtes was reported to have passed away on Wednesday, although the medical examiner’s report did not specify the location or provide further details.
Scholtes and his wife, Erika, a practicing anesthesiologist, had recently moved to a $1 million residence in the suburbs of Phoenix, away from the property in Marana where their daughter tragically died. The couple had left Parker sleeping in the car with the air conditioning on while Erika was working at Banner University Medical Center, the same hospital the child was taken to.
Erika defended her husband in court, referring to their daughter’s death as a “mistake.” Although Scholtes initially pleaded not guilty and rejected a plea deal that could have resulted in a shorter sentence, he later agreed to the 20 to 30-year jail term for second-degree murder and child abuse.
Additionally, Scholtes and Erika were sued by their eldest daughter, aged 17, for emotional distress, assault, battery, and fraud. Text messages between the couple indicated that leaving the children in the car for extended periods was a common practice, with Erika expressing concerns about it during the incident that led to Parker being rushed to the hospital.