NEWTON, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts man is facing child endangerment charges after police say he left his three children — ages 5, 3 and 9 months — inside a car for about an hour in freezing temperatures while he was in court.

Newton police Lt. Bruce Apotheker says a passer-by notified police about the children after spotting them Tuesday afternoon inside a car in a municipal lot near Newton District Court.

Police say it was 23 degrees outside and the unlocked car was not running. The children were taken to the hospital as a precaution.

The 38-year-old Framingham man, whose name was not made public, told authorities he was only inside the courthouse for 12 minutes. Police estimate he was inside for an hour.

He’ll be summoned to court.