The Orange County Criminal Lawyer Blog
When three youngsters were allegedly left home alone by their mother one of them called 911 and asked if someone could come and assist with them watching videos online.
On Thursday evening, 23-year-old Natalee Kahl allegedly left her apartment where her three young children remained unsupervised.
One of the kids reportedly contacted emergency services because they were having problems using YouTube, and when the child mentioned that their mother was not present the police were sent to the address.
The officers entered the apartment after arriving and they reported that they discovered a pipe on the counter and they alleged that it contained what looked like remnants of residue from marijuana.
When Kahl returned home she was met by the officers and they began to question her about the details of the reported incident. Kahl reportedly said that she had run to the home of a neighbor in order to get her boyfriend.
According to the affidavit, the officers held the belief that the children, ages 1, 3, and 5, were by themselves for at least 40 minutes.
Kahl was arrested for suspicion of possession of paraphernalia, and she is facing three misdemeanor counts of child endangerment for allegedly leaving her children home alone.
The arrest report stated that Kahl was read her Miranda rights and after doing so she allegedly gave them a statement confirming that she was the mother of the children and that she understood that they might have faced danger that they could not handle by themselves if something unexpected had taken place.
Since the authorities alleged that Kahl gave them a statement after she was Mirandized it could have been seen as an implied waiver of those rights. If that is found to be the case then Kahl will still have the option to invoke her Miranda rights regarding giving any further statements if she chooses to do so.
Kahl was released after spending the night in the Johnson County Jail.
If you or someone you love is suspected of child endangerment, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer Staycie R. Sena at (949) 477-8088 for a consultation now.