In Florida, a mother is facing child neglect charges due to the fact that she allegedly left her seven year old daughter unattended and alone outside a bar for hours on end in the middle of the night while she was experiencing a night of galavanting and drinking. On Sunday, October 29th some 40 miles northeast of the city of Orlando, the neglect occurred. Law enforcement officials responded to a call from a bar in DeLand, Florida which was placed at 2:58 in the middle of the night, two minutes shy of the witching hour.
The bar, called “The Perfect Spot”, usually closes around 10 p.m. on a Saturday evening. When police arrived on the scene, they discovered the seven year old alone in an unlocked car in a very dimly lit parking lot in front of the bar with no street lights. An immediate search to find the mother of the essentially abandoned child was launched, but it was proven quite difficult to ascertain her location. A K-9 was even brought in. Eventually, at around half past six in the morning, or over three hours since the discovery of the child was reported, the mother was found attempting to return to her vehicle. She appeared disheveled, slurred her words noticeably, and was covered in dirt and grime. She also was not in possession of her shoes.
The child was placed in the care of the Florida Department of Children and families. The mother was arrested and charged with child neglect without great bodily harm. This is not the first occurrence of poor parenting in the sunshine state. Recently, a young boy was allegedly found to have witnessed his mother fornicating with two men while under the influence of drugs. One of the men later died. In Osceola County, a mother was a prime suspect after her 13 year old son was found strangled to death in bed.
