SAUGUS — A 2-year-old Peabody girl died Sunday after being accidentally dropped outside a Saugus church, police said.
The accident happened when a parked car lurched forward into another car, said Assistant Police Chief Leonard Campanello.
No one was struck by the vehicle, he said, but the toddler fell during the incident and suffered a traumatic head injury, Campanello said.
No charges will be brought in the case, which was a “tragic accident,” Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett’s office said in a statement.
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The accident occured around 2 p.m. outside the Brazilian Ministry of the Family United Methodist Church.
First responders rushed the girl to Massachusetts General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 2:53 p.m, Campanello said.
The toddler was being held by her mother when the mother reached into her car from the passenger side and turned on the ignition so she could begin to cool down the car with the air conditioning, a source with knowledge of the investigation told the Globe.
The car lurched forward at that point, knocking the toddler from her mother’s arms, the source said.