PALM COAST, Fla. (WFLA) — Officials were notified when a baby was spotted alone in a car Friday night in Palm Coast without the parents in sight.
As it turned out, the couple was inside a nearby bar consuming a few alcoholic beverages, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Body camera footage captured the deputies’ arrival on the scene following a report about the child left unattended. It was just after 10 p.m., and loud music was audible in the parking area.
Deputies contemplated smashing the car’s windows before realizing the car was unlocked with the keys in the ignition and engine running.
As deputies began assessing the infant, a woman, later identified as Clarisse Finnegan, 28, came out of the bar and walked up to the vehicle.
She informed investigators that she owned the vehicle and that her husband, Norman Finnegan Jr., 60, was inside the bar. He was then escorted from the establishment and held for questioning.
A witness said she first noticed the vehicle at the bar around 10 p.m. She recalled seeing Norman Finnegan go out to the car and look inside around 10:15 p.m., but said he then went back inside the bar.
Clarisse Finnegan told deputies she had gone inside the bar to use the restroom and left to check on the baby after she was done. She said she went back inside to see if her husband was ready to leave. She then found deputies at the car as her husband was paying for his tab.
However, authorities said the husband and wife’s statements didn’t match up — particularly when it came to details about how long Clarisse Finnegan had been inside the bar.
Witnesses further confirmed to investigators that both of them had been seen at the bar drinking.
“These two will never receive parents of the year award with this behavior,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “It’s never acceptable to leave an infant alone inside a running vehicle — especially while inside a bar drinking. This kind of recklessness could have ended in tragedy. I want to thank the concerned citizen who reported this incident and our deputies who acted quickly to protect this innocent child.”
Norman and Clarisse Finnegan were arrested for felony child neglect without great bodily harm — a third-degree felony.
Officials said the couple was taken to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. Norman Finnegan was later was later released on a $2,500 bond, and his wife was released on her own recognizance.
The Florida Department of Children and Families is conducting a separate investigation into the incident.
