Off-duty police captain cited for leaving toddler in locked van while fishing, sheriff says

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN/Gray News) - A police captain was cited and placed on leave after her toddler was found alone in a locked van at a lake in Nebraska on Sunday.

Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to Pawnee Lake at 4:04 p.m. on a report of a distressed 2-year-old child locked in a vehicle with no adults nearby.

Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner said the mother, later identified as off-duty Lincoln police Capt. Mayde McGuire, 54, took her toddler out of the van before deputies arrived.

Deputies spoke with McGuire and her partner, 49-year-old Mary Tobiassen. The investigation determined the toddler had been left in the van for, at a minimum, 28 minutes while McGuire and Tobiassen were fishing, the sheriff’s office said.

Wagner said the temperature outside at the time was 78 degrees.

The toddler did not have any injuries as a result of being left in the van.

“We just can’t emphasize enough how quickly the interior of a vehicle can get extremely hot. Even on a 78-degree day, which is pretty pleasant for us outdoors. Inside a vehicle, it gets extremely hot, extremely quick, and so children just cannot be left inside a vehicle at this time of year,” Wagner said.

McGuire submitted a preliminary breath test, which showed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.108, according to the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office.

McGuire and Tobiassen were each cited for misdemeanor child abuse.

The investigation is ongoing as the sheriff’s office reviews video from deputies and witnesses at the scene.