CLEAR FORK, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Two parents are charged with child neglect.
According to a criminal complaint, on Sunday, July 18, 2021, a witness came upon a child in the road only wearing a pair of shorts and a diaper. The witness pulled to a nearby church and waiting for authorities to arrive. Deputies were unable to locate the parents.
Later in the day, the same deputy was in Oceana, and a man identified himself as Billy Blankenship. He asked him if he had his son. Blankenship showed the deputy a picture, and he confirmed that his son was found earlier. This deputy went to the parent’s home for a statement. According to the parent’s Mr. Blankenship stated that his wife, Kaellen Blankenship woke him up crying, asking where the baby was. Mr. Blankenship noted that he was asleep, and the child opened a screen and climbed out a window.
Deputies noted the child was out of the home for three hours before his parent’s made a call to 911.
Both parents are charged with child neglect. They are both in Southern Regional Jail under a 5,000 dollar bond.