2-Year-Old Child Found Wandering Unsupervised In Louisiana, Mother Didn't Notice Missing Toddler For Hours

A woman in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, was arrested after her toddler was found wandering on a street unsupervised.

Officers with the West Monroe Police Department responded to a home on 100 block of Dopson Place around 8.40 a.m. on May 23 after receiving information that someone found a 2-year-old child wandering unsupervised and took the toddler home. Officers released the child to the Department of Children and Family Services after they were unable to locate the child’s parents.

However, a few hours later, 911 dispatchers received a call from 34-year-old Amber Bonner saying that her child was missing. The Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office was immediately contacted by the police as the mother was located outside of the city limits.

The deputies arrived at the mother’s home. She told them that she woke up around 11 a.m. and thought the toddler was still asleep. Around 1 p.m., the woman noticed that the toddler was missing and immediately called 911.

The woman was taken into custody and booked into the Ouachita Correctional Center on one count of child desertion. Her bond was set at $25,000.

In a similar incident in Florida, a man was arrested after his toddler was found wandering on a highway. Micah Adkins, 43, was checking his emails after putting the 2-year-old child in bed. He didn't realize the baby had escaped. A driver found the boy in diapers wandering on a highway and immediately called 911. Investigation revealed that the boy escaped after the garage door was left open. The father was taken into custody on charges of child neglect.

In another incident earlier this month, a couple in Minot, North Dakota, was arrested after their 2-year-old child was spotted wandering on a street unaccompanied. Deputies responded to the 500 block of Valley Street after receiving a report of an unattended child wandering in the area unsupervised. A passerby had spotted the child in diapers walking on the sidewalk. The boy wasn’t wearing pants or shoes. The parents of the child were identified with the help of the neighbors. The parents, a 27-year-old man and 24-year-old woman, were taken into custody for Class C-felony child neglect and held at Ward County Jail.