Toddler wandered through city's 'busiest intersection' before authorities found live chickens in her crib: Police

A 31-year-old parent successful West Virginia is accused of leaving her 2-year-old daughter to rotation unsocial successful the mediate of what constabulary described arsenic the "busiest intersection successful the city" earlier the toddler was rescued by a bully Samaritan.

Shannon Leigh Blacka surrendered to authorities Monday and was charged with 1 number of gross neglect of a kid creating important hazard of decease oregon superior bodily injury, tribunal records reviewed by Law&Crime show.

Troopers with the West Virginia State Police responded soon aft 2:30 p.m. to a 911 telephone reporting an unattended toddler lasting successful the intersection of East State Avenue and North Main Street successful Terra Alta, according to a report from Clarksburg, West Virginia, NBC affiliate WBOY. The intersection is astir 180 miles northeast of Charleston, West Virginia.

Upon arriving, archetypal responders recovered that an unidentified bystander had retrieved the toddler from the roadway and stayed with her until instrumentality enforcement arrived to instrumentality custody.

It took authorities astir 27 minutes to hint the kid backmost to a residence connected East Avenue that was astir 100 yards distant from the intersection, country CBS affiliate WDTV reported. During that time, constabulary said nary 1 from the location came looking for the girl.

Troopers, accompanied by unit from West Virginia Child Protective Services, went to the location wherever they recovered Blacka surviving with 3 different children.

Investigators described the conditions wrong the residence arsenic "unsuitable for children."

Not lone were unrecorded roaches allegedly crawling passim the home, but authorities said unrecorded chickens were being kept successful 1 of the cribs wherever a kid slept. Alongside the crib was reportedly a bucket containing quality feces that was wrong scope of each the children.

While astatine the residence, troopers said they watched the 2-year-old retrieve a cigaret from Blacka's purse and clasp it successful her hand. They besides observed an 8-month-old with a rash connected her thighs and backmost arsenic good arsenic scratches connected her forehead.

Additionally, investigators said they witnessed a 4-year-old punch the toddler "hard successful her face," adding that Blacka showed nary absorption to the assault.

Authorities did not disclose however the toddler managed to permission the location oregon however agelong she had been successful the intersection earlier the passerby intervened.

Blacka was booked into the Tygart Valley Regional Jail, wherever she remained successful custody connected $25,000 enslaved arsenic of Tuesday. She is scheduled to look successful tribunal for her preliminary proceeding connected July 14, records show.