A West Virginia mother was arrested after authorities said she fell asleep while allegedly under the influence, leaving her 6-year-old autistic son able to climb out of a second-story apartment window before later testing positive for cocaine.
Deputies were called to an apartment complex in Fairmont on Monday after a 911 caller reported that a child had jumped from a second-floor window, according to WDTV.
The child’s mother, 30-year-old Stevie Thibodeaux, told responding deputies she had been asleep when her son got out, the report said.
Thibodeaux pointed investigators to childproof locks on the apartment doors, saying they were normally used to prevent her autistic child from leaving the home, according to court documents.
Deputies, however, observed that the screen was missing from the window the boy had gone through.
The child was taken to a local hospital for evaluation, where testing showed he was positive for cocaine, court documents obtained by the outlet stated.
During a search of Thibodeaux’s apartment, police reported finding a white plate holding a food stamp card, a drug-ingestion device and a white powdery substance.
Investigators said Thibodeaux admitted to using cocaine and acknowledged leaving the plate with the drugs in her closet.
The disgraced mother was charged with child neglect creating risk of serious injury or death and booked into the North Central Regional Jail.
The condition of the young boy remains unknown.
