Hannah Faith Cormier, 32, through her attorney Bill Riley, entered the plea Monday in the 31st Judicial District Court asking for a jury trial. It was her first court appearance since charges against her were reduced.

Cormier was initially arrested for second-degree murder and cruelty to juveniles, but a grand jury indicted her on the lesser charge of negligent homicide earlier this month.

She remains out of jail on a $10,000 bond pending a pre-trial conference scheduled for March 31, 2025. The outcome of the pre-trial conference will determine if the matter will proceed to trial or be resolved with a plea.

Cormier is accused of leaving her daughter unattended inside the hot vehicles for several hours outside a local fast food restaurant while she worked.

Temperatures on that day were in the mid-to-upper 90s with triple-digit heat indices. The baby’s body temperature was 109 degree when she was taken to the hospital, according to police.

Cormier told police she was called in to work and left the baby unattended in the car for several hours while she was inside. She did not realize the baby was still in the back seat until she went to leave work and found her unconscious.

Cormier took the baby to Ochsner American Legion Hospital in Jennings where she was stabilized and later transported to another hospital in critical condition. She later died from what police said was a heat stroke.