Toddler
left alone for 19 days after mother is arrested
JACKSONVILLE,
Fla. (AP) -- A 2-year-old girl left home
alone for 2 1/2 weeks while her mother was
in jail has been released from the hospital
after being treated for malnutrition and
dehydration, officials said Wednesday.
The
child, who survived by eating ketchup, mustard
and dried pasta, was released late Tuesday
from Wolfson Children's Hospital to the
custody of the state Department of Children
& Families. The agency granted temporary
custody to her father.
''The
only thing I can tell you is that she is
in good condition,'' hospital spokesman
David Foreman said.
The
little girl had been left alone since her
mother, Dakeysha Telita Lee, was jailed
Sept. 10 for aggravated assault and petty
theft, police said.
The
mother was charged Monday with child abuse,
and was being held Wednesday on $170,006
bond.
The
child's father, Ogden Lee, who is separated
from the 22-year-old mother, said he had
been trying to contact her for two weeks
and did not learn until Sunday night that
she was in jail.
When
a manager let him into the apartment, the
youngster was lying nude in a baby's bathtub,
covered with a towel and was watching a
TV cartoon channel.
She
was filthy and covered with dry ketchup
and jelly, Sheriff John Rutherford said
Tuesday.
While
in the hospital, the girl ate four pieces
of chicken, a cheeseburger, mashed potatoes,
Cheerios and drank two pints of milk, the
girl's father told The Florida Times-Union.
''I
am a 240-pound man and I can't keep from
crying,'' he said. ''I can't even imagine
how hungry she must have been.''
Patricia
Mallon, DCF's district manager for administrative
services in Jacksonville, said the department
will continue to investigate and make a
recommendation for permanent custody.
''We
investigate and determine the best option
for the child,'' she said.
''I
am a 240-pound man and I can't keep from
crying. I can't even imagine how hungry
she must
have been.''
-- Ogden Lee,
girl's father
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