A grandmother was granted probation on reckless endangerment charges after deputies pulled her over and found her 3-year-old grandchild submerged under enough clothes they feared the child might suffocate.
The woman, Angela Michelle Roberts, 42, of Manchester was granted an 11-month, 29-day judicial diversion by Circuit Court Judge Bart Stanley on the charge of reckless endangerment. She will also be required to attend safe driving school and can have her criminal record erased after her year on probation is complete.
Roberts was charged after a traffic stop by Warren County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brad Myers last year. In his warrant, the deputy said he had specifically warned Roberts to take the child home after a domestic incident had occurred at the house where Roberts and her granddaughter were visiting.
Roberts had legal custody of her granddaughter. In addition to telling Roberts to take the child home, the deputy also warned her to make sure the child was properly restrained inside the car.
A short time later, deputy Myers saw Roberts’ Pontiac G6 with multiple people inside the car. He pulled the car over to conduct a welfare check.
“I saw five very large people, a dog, a cat and all of the personal property belonging to the two daughters in the car,” Myers said, noting the vehicle was packed. He looked around and finally found the young child.
“The 3-year-old was underneath a very large amount of clothes and all I could see of the child was the top of her hair,” Myers revealed.
The deputy said he feared the mass of clothing that was covering the child could have suffocated her.
“I believe the child could have easily suffocated and no one in the vehicle would have known,” Myers said.