Inset: Ashley Ellis (Vanderburgh County Jail). Background: The area in Evansville, Indiana, where Ellis’ 1-year-old was allegedly found wandering the streets (Google Maps).
A 42-year-old woman from Indiana is facing charges after allegedly providing a vodka bottle to her 16-year-old daughter and leaving the teen and her friend in charge of a 1-year-old child. The toddler was found wandering alone on the street during the night.
Ashley Ellis was arrested on Thursday and is being charged with two counts of neglecting a dependent and two counts related to contributing to the delinquency of minors, according to records accessed by Law&Crime.
This event occurred in the early hours of July 5 near a home on the 1700 block of Stevens Avenue, Evansville, approximately 165 miles southwest of Indianapolis, as reported by local NBC station WFIE.
The reports indicate that a woman in the neighborhood discovered a 1-year-old girl, who was later confirmed to be Ellis’ child, wandering on the street in a urine-soaked diaper.
Around 5 a.m., the neighbor went outside, brought the child to safety, and contacted 911. During the call, she mentioned hearing dogs bark, prompting her to check outside where she saw the little girl shouting “mommy, mommy,” according to local CBS and Fox affiliate WEVV.
After bringing the child inside, the neighbor said she changed the toddler and noticed that she was suffering from a severe diaper rash and a sore.
Upon arriving, first responders went to the toddler’s home in search of a parent, but they reportedly only found Ellis’ 16-year-old daughter and the teen’s 15-year-old friend. Shortly after authorities reached the scene, the 16-year-old appeared to suffer a seizure and was transported to a local hospital in an ambulance.
In an interview with police, the 15-year-old friend reportedly said she was at the home at about 1:30 a.m. that morning when Ellis gave the teens a bottle of vodka and left. She claimed they both took about three shots of alcohol.
The teenage friend reportedly said she was not even aware that there was a toddler in the home until about 2:30 a.m., when she heard the 1-year-old crying. The 15-year-old further confirmed that she and the 16-year-old were throwing up at about 4:40 a.m., which is when she believed the toddler walked outside calling for Ellis. She guessed the child had been outside unattended for about 30 minutes.
Police made multiple attempts to contact Ellis, but were unable to get in touch with her for two days. When she eventually did speak with authorities, Ellis reportedly said that she had only planned on being out of the residence for a few hours, but panicked when she learned what happened.
Ellis also refused to take a drug test, WFIE reported.
Ellis is currently being held in the Vanderburgh County Jail on $750 bond. She is scheduled to appear in court for an initial appearance Friday afternoon, court records show.
