Two San Martin parents were arrested on child endangerment
charges after Sheriff’s deputies found their 14-month-old baby
sitting unattended in a hot car, within arm’s reach of a stash of
marijuana.
Gilroy – Two San Martin parents were arrested on child endangerment charges after Sheriff’s deputies found their 14-month-old baby sitting unattended in a hot car, within arm’s reach of a stash of marijuana.
Manuel Garcia, 37, and Annette Wall, 26, had been evicted from their home on Santa Teresa Boulevard in San Martin and were moving out at 11am Thursday when Sheriff’s deputies arrived, called by their landlord, who feared the couple might steal his property as they left. Deputy Gary Wallace found the baby sitting in a van outside, unattended.
Though the van’s windows were rolled down the van was stiflingly hot, and reeked of marijuana, Sgt. Joe Waldherr said. Inspecting the van, deputies found 2.7 ounces of marijuana and a scale. Both Garcia and Wall were arrested on suspicion of child endangerment and possession of marijuana for sale.
“The baby seat was in the middle, and the marijuana was on the floor,” said Lt. Dale Unger. “The baby sitting alone in the car might not be enough to prove child endangerment, but marijuana within hands’ reach of the child – that was the key factor.”
The infant was taken into protective custody. Thursday night, the couple’s 7-year-old daughter was also taken into custody; deputies found her at her grandfather’s home in San Jose.
Days earlier, a Gilroy resident complained that another baby had been left unattended in a dark-blue car outside Nob Hill Foods. Erin Straub said she was picking up her dry-cleaning from a nearby store at 5:45pm Tuesday when she saw the child, and called 911. No charges were filed against the mother, who came out of Nob Hill Pharmacy and removed the baby from her car shortly after Straub called police, according to Straub. Straub later wrote Police Chief Gregg Giusiana, complaining that the officer who responded to the call didn’t interview her or remove the child.
Gilroy Police Sgt. Jim Gillio, the department spokesman, was unavailable to comment on the incident Friday.
