The ABERNATHY Toddlers - 2 and 3 yo - Mesa AZ

The mother of two toddlers, one of whom was found eating dog food
after she left them alone in the middle of the night to visit a
boyfriend, will serve three months in jail and 20 years on probation.
Samantha Abernathy, 21, of Mesa, pleaded guilty in September to one
class-five felony count of child abuse for leaving her 2- and
3-year-old children home unattended.


Abernathy's neighbors called Mesa police about 7:20 a.m. June 24,
when they saw the children wandering around their apartment complex
near Gilbert Road and University Drive, police said.
When police arrived, they found the 2-year-old eating dog food from
the pantry. There were urine and feces stains in the children's rooms,
and the refrigerator, which contained mostly alcohol and little food,
was shut with a childproof lock.
During an interview with police, Abernathy said she left the
children around 2 a.m. to go see an ex-boyfriend and didn't return
until about 10:45 a.m.
Abernathy's sentence didn't exactly go off as originally planned.
After pleading guilty in September, she failed to show up for her
original sentencing date, which was set for Oct 23. A warrant was then
issued for her arrest.
Last week, U.S. marshals arrested Abernathy near Seventh Avenue and
Union Hills Drive, where she had been staying with a friend, the U.S.
Marshal's Service said.
"We are grateful the children in this tragic incident were rescued and are now being properly cared for," said Maricopa County Andrew Thomas said in a release.