WESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) – A child custody dispute in Lewis County ended with a mother taken to jail after she allegedly bit a state trooper and kicked two deputies while resisting detention.
Officers responded to a home on Cove Lick Road in Weston at approximately 11:13 p.m. Thursday, September 17. A neighbor had called 911 on behalf of a woman seeking guardianship of three children, saying their mother, Brooklyn J. Ireland, was trying to leave with them and appeared impaired, according to the complaint.
When officers arrived, Ireland was holding her 9-month-old child. The responding officer reported that Ireland appeared worried, could not remain still and had glassy, watery eyes. The complaint does not identify a substance or report a drug test.
After Ireland handed the infant to the neighbor, officers attempted to speak with her. Police said she repeatedly tried to walk toward a porch where the other children were located despite instructions to stay with the officers.
Officers then attempted to detain Ireland. According to the complaint, she pulled away and resisted being handcuffed. During the struggle, Ireland allegedly bit a state trooper, kicked the responding deputy several times in the back and kicked a second deputy near his duty belt.
The neighbor told police that, before officers arrived, Ireland had placed the children in a burgundy van and tried to leave. The neighbor said she moved a truck to block the road and that Ireland returned the children to the home. The complaint gives differing accounts of how the infant was secured: the neighbor said the child was in a car seat, while the woman seeking guardianship said the car seat was inside the house.
Police reported finding one forward-facing car seat in the van. The children were 4 years old, 2 years old and 9 months old. The responding officer concluded that they had not been properly secured in age-appropriate restraints.
Ireland was transported to Central Regional Jail pending arraignment. Police said she continued struggling during the drive, removing her seat belt, attempting to slip out of restraints and standing on the patrol vehicle’s rear seat while it was moving.
