Columbia woman arrested for driving car into Kansas River, killing a child

A Columbia woman is in custody, accused of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder for allegedly driving her car into the Kansas River on Friday, killing her 5 year old daughter and endangering her 1 year old son.

Lawrence Police confirm they responded to the south bank of the Kansas River Friday around 1:15 p.m. for reports of a vehicle in the river.

They found a woman, Scharron Renea Dingledine, 26, and a small child in the water. They were rescued and taken to a local hospital. The 1 year old had critical injuries and remains hospitalized.

Police said they got information that there was another occupant inside the vehicle so they began searching the river. They discontinued the search and recovery efforts Friday night due to diminishing and unsafe light conditions.

They recovered the 5-year-old’s body Saturday morning when search efforts began again. No one else is believed to have been in the vehicle.

Dingledine is currently being held at the Douglas County Jail without bond