Patricia Krentcil, NJ 'tanning mom', case sent to grand jury

(CBS/AP) NEWARK, N.J. - Authorities referred the case of the deeply-tanned New Jersey woman dubbed "tanning mom" to a grand jury, CBS New York reports. Patricia Krentcil is accused of taking her 6-year-old daughter to a tanning booth, causing her to suffer from skin burns.

Pictures: NJ mom accused of putting 6-year-old in tanning booth

Krentcil, 44, was scheduled to appear in court on Monday for a hearing on a child endangerment charge, which was canceled once the case was sent to grand jury. She pleaded not guilty and said she "would never permit" her daughter to go tanning, according to CBS New York.

"That child was never in that tanning booth," her attorney John D. Caruso said. "She loves her child more than her own life and would never ever allow her child to go inside that tanning bed."

Krentcil said her daughter's burn actually came from the sun on an unusually warm day.

In New Jersey, it's against the law for anyone under the age of 14 to use a tanning booth. Krentcil has reportedly been banned from at least 63 tanning salons in the tri-state area.

Complete coverage of the Patrecia Krentcil case on Crimesider