Christopher Scholtes, an Arizona resident who had been convicted of murder following the tragic death of his young daughter in a hot car, has passed away.

As reported by News 4 Tucson, the 38-year-old Scholtes was expected to appear for a court hearing at the Pima County Superior Court on Wednesday but did not attend.

Scholtes was under orders to surrender himself on that day, with his sentencing set for November 21, under the terms of a plea agreement.

Deputy County Attorney Kim Hunley conveyed to the media that Scholtes’ absence was unforeseen and mentioned that an official news release would be forthcoming.

According to Arizona’s Family, Scholtes was discovered deceased at a residence located near 7th Street and Northern Avenue in Phoenix at approximately 5 a.m. on Wednesday.

— Chorus Nylander KVOA (@CNylanderKVOA) November 5, 2025

Arizona’s Family that Scholtes was found dead at a home on 7th Street and Northern Avenue in Phoenix, at around 5 a.m. Wednesday morning.

The Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office stated that he died on November 5.

Scholtes pleaded guilty last month to second-degree murder, along with intentional child abuse likely to cause death or serious physical injury, in connection with the July 9, 2024, death of Parker Scholtes, 2.

The Arizona Republic reports that in March 2025, Scholtes rejected a plea deal for second-degree murder. The deal would have landed him behind bars from 10 to 25 years, without the possibility of parole.

He was facing up to 30 years in prison when he failed to appear for Wednesday’s court hearing.

Previous Video Coverage

As CrimeOnline previously reported, Scholtes left Parker in a vehicle parked outside the family’s Marana home in the driveway, with temperatures that day surging to 109 degrees.

Scholtes claimed he left the air conditioning on and that he never intended to harm his daughter.

Scholtes’ other two children, ages 9 and 5, said Scholtes usually left them alone in the vehicle to play. On the day of the incident, Scholtes got distracted while their sister was still in the car, the children said.

The timeline of events Scholtes gave investigators did not match security video obtained from a neighbor. The video confirmed Scholtes left Parker in the vehicle for three hours, not one hour, as he had claimed.

Scholtes also claimed he arrived home with the children at around 2 p.m., but security footage showed the vehicle arriving at 12:53 p.m. and not leaving again.

Before he returned home, he allegedly stole alcohol from a store. When he returned to the residence, he watched pornography, played video games and sent his wife text messages, Tucson.com reports.

At around 4 p.m. that day, Scholtes’ wife, Dr. Erika Scholtes, arrived home, discovered Parker unresponsive and performed CPR. She then called 911.

Scholtes claimed his phone was supposed to ping when the car overheats or shuts off, but that didn’t happen.

“I told you to stop leaving them in the car. How many times have I told you?” Scholtes’ wife later said in a text message.

Check back for updates.

[Feature Photo: Christopher and Parker Scholtes/Facebook]