TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A father has been charged with child neglect after police found a naked, 6-month-old baby screaming inside an empty trailer in Tallahassee.
According to an arrest report, Tallahassee police officers was called to the 1400 block of Nashville Drive for a neglected child. When officers arrived, they could clearly hear a child crying from inside a trailer at the location.
Officers went inside the trailer and found a 6-month-old baby screaming from the back bedroom. Investigators note the baby had no clothes on and was wearing a dirty diaper.
EMS arrived on scene to care for the child and ended up taking the child to the hospital.
While officers were investigating the home, members of the child's family arrived and spoke with officers. Documents say the family members told officers that they left the child with Devin Shivers, the child's stepfather, while they were away from the house.
The family members told officers that they left the baby with Shivers that afternoon, which they had done in the past with no issues, but got an angry call from him around 7:45 p.m. During the phone call, they said Shiver told them they "had better get home because [the child] was home alone."
Around 9:15 p.m., Shivers called again and again told them that the baby was home alone. The family members called back demanding to know if he was kidding, to which Shivers stated he wasn't and hung up.
While investigators were on scene, documents say Shivers walked up. When they began talking to him, they say he immediately said that that he wasn't at fault for leaving the child alone.
He told police that he had left the child from 15-20 minutes to go to his cousin's house.
"Shivers also stated he was left with [the child] and was supposed to watch him until [family members] returned," documents read.
Based on the evidence, Shivers was charged with a single count of child neglect. He is out of jail on a $2,000 bond
