Children Left In Freezing SUV While Mom Drank At Bar
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Cheryn Scaggs |
DEBARY, Florida -- Deputies say a DeBary woman was
arrested early Monday morning for two counts of child neglect when it was
discovered that she had been drinking in a bar for two hours while two young
children sat in her vehicle in the parking lot. The unharmed children were
turned over to relatives while a Volusia County Sheriff’s deputy booked
30-year-old Cheryn Scaggs into the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach.
A patrol deputy drove by
Shotz Sports Bar & Grill located on 167
S. Charles R. Beall Blvd. in Debary, Florida, shortly after 2 a.m.
and noticed a crowd had gathered in the parking lot. The deputy investigated
and found that an allegedly intoxicated Scaggs had asked other bar patrons to help her
get home.
However, once patrons got outside they saw two girls, ages 1 and 4, were
sitting in the backseat of Scaggs’ sport utility vehicle. The deputy
noted that the vehicle was not running and the temperature outside was about 30
degrees.
The deputy questioned
witnesses who said that Scaggs had been at the bar since midnight. They noted
that she had walked out of the bar a few times, but none of the witnesses knew
that the children were out there.
Scaggs had even allegedly told one witness that she had
left the children with a neighbor. A windshield visor was also in place,
hindering the view of the SUV’s interior. Volusia County Fire Services
responded and determined that the children were unharmed.