Columbus, OH – The 32-year-old parent, later identified as Domenique, was found guilty of endangering a child during a bench trial last week, according to court records.
However, she will not go to prison because the judge gave her a five-year probation sentence instead. The prosecution says the defendant left her three kids at home alone for several days so she could fly to Florida for “liposuction surgery” with a friend.
Prosecutors say the defendant left her twin 7-year-old special needs children and their 10-year-old sibling while she flew to a different state. Court records show that the parent left her kids alone for a few days in February of this year.
A woman’s child told her teacher that she was home alone with her siblings while their parent was somewhere else. This led to an investigation. The child also told the teacher that their parent video called and ordered food to be brought to their house.
The worried teacher called 911 to let the authorities know what was going on. When the police arrived, they talked to the kids. The kids said their mom hadn’t left them alone, but the police didn’t believe them.
Soon after, the police called one of the children’s family members, who reportedly told them that her daughter hadn’t told her she was leaving the state. The worried grandmother also told the police that she would look after the girls if they asked her to.
When the police called the parent a few days later, she reportedly told them that “she thought her 10-year-old daughter could care for the other two girls while she was not home.” The woman also said she had never been out of the state.
The police found out that the woman had been to Florida the day before the 911 call while they were investigating. In a second interview with police, the woman reportedly admitted that she had gone to Florida “to help a friend who was having liposuction.”
