Clare Meacham: Arizona mom, 23, arrested for DUI after leaving 5-month-old baby at home to go out DRINKING
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MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA: Clare Margaret Meacham, was reportedly arrested on Thursday, October 27, 2022, for drinking and driving (DUI) and later charged with child abuse for leaving her five-month-old baby home alone. Police arrested the 23-year-old mother after they received calls about a possible drunk driver at 2.20 pm and stopped her in the area of Gilbert and Baseline roads.
After Meacham was taken into custody, the drunk mother revealed to cops that she "may" have left her baby home alone, according to the court documents obtained by Arizona's Family. As the police reached her home near Signal Butte and Ray roads, the cops found the child crying out loud outside the home, reported Daily Mail.
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Later, the authorities contacted the Department of Child Safety. Fortunately, the child was uninjured and remained safe. However, they handed over the child to another family member. From the footage of the doorbell camera, it is understood that the mother left home around 12.44 pm. Meanwhile, she was arrested in less than two hours. However, the woman claimed that she didn't remember anything after leaving her baby in the crib before heading out.
According to New York Post, the 23-year-old lives alone with her baby. However, the culprit's mother also has access to the home. Records indicated that she had not tried to contact any of them to watch the baby while she was away. Meacham was arrested on driving under the influence (DUI) and child abuse charges.
In a similar incident, as reported by MEAWW, a mother named Victoria Hidalgo has been arrested and charged after she fired a bullet at her home’s front door and then left for a bar party, leaving her child all alone. Police officials learned about the incident after getting a call from an unidentified woman, who went to check Victoria Hidalgo's house and discovered “a bullet lodged in the front door.”
Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell said, “There is no excuse for an infant to be left in home alone, nor is there a good explanation for the discharge of the firearm. It is clear that this woman’s priorities are way out of order, and I hope this experience serves as a wake-up call for her. I pray that things change and the child is properly cared for moving forward.”
Another similar incident occurred in January 2021, when Stephanie Goddu, a mother, sent her child alone to daycare in a Lyft while putting another in a urine-soaked blanket. On January 8, 2021, at approximately 6 pm, Manchester Police arrested Stephanie Goddu, 35, and charged her with Endangerment of the Welfare of a Child. Goddu was wanted in connection with two incidents involving her children. The condition of both the infant and the unsupervised ride to daycare caused police to charge Goddu. Since Goddu did not initially surrender, she was also charged with Resisting Arrest.
If you or anyone you know suspects child abuse, you are urged to immediately call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential and the hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.