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Inset: Larry Donell Lee (Craighead County Sheriff”s Department). Background: The suburban area where Lee allegedly left his infant son in a car seat on the ground in Jonesboro, Ark. (Google Maps).
In Arkansas, a man has been taken into custody after his infant son was found left unattended in a car seat on the ground for about 30 minutes, as reported by local authorities.
Larry Donell Lee, 22, faces charges including felony child endangerment with potential for death or serious injury, along with a misdemeanor for failing to appear in court, according to statements from the Jonesboro Police Department and the Craighead County Sheriff’s Department.
The incident unfolded on November 6 outside a home on Churchill Drive in Jonesboro, a town with a college presence situated approximately 70 miles northwest of Memphis, Tennessee.
On that day, Lee was responsible for caring for the baby while the child’s mother attended to errands, as detailed in a probable cause affidavit cited by KAIT, an affiliate of ABC, NBC, and The CW Plus.
Unfortunately, the mother returned from her errands to a distressing discovery.
“When she arrived home, she found the infant in his car seat placed on the ground in front of the door,” the affidavit reads. “The child had vomited on himself and was crying. She estimated that the infant had been left outside alone for approximately 30 minutes.”
Prior to the little boy’s predicament, his parents had been arguing about something on the phone, according to law enforcement.
The exact nature of that argument, however, is currently unclear.
“During the argument, Lee told her that he was returning the child to her residence,” the affidavit goes on. “The mother informed him multiple times that she was not yet home, but Lee said he did not believe her.”
The mother repeatedly insisted she was not yet home, authorities say. Still, the defendant was allegedly determined to leave – and to leave the child to his own devices, outside, on the front porch.
The child’s mother said Lee told her: “He is waiting on you.”
“She told Lee she was calling the police and that he could not leave the infant outside alone,” the affidavit continues.
Court records obtained by Law&Crime show a man with the same name as Lee subject to a child support enforcement case in Craighead County as of late October. The child in that case is 4 months old.
On Tuesday, Lee was arrested by the Jonesboro Police Department, jail records show. On Wednesday, Craighead County District Court Judge Tommy Fowler found probable cause to sustain the child endangerment charge and issued a no-contact order.
The defendant is currently detained in the Craighead County Jail on $25,000 bond. He is next slated to appear in court on Dec. 16.