Woman accused of leaving kids alone while she gambled
Posted on Thursday, May 8, 2008
BENTONVILLE - A Siloam Springs woman was arrested on endangering charges for allegedly leaving her two children alone while she gambled at an Oklahoma casino.
Sherrie Tomlinson, 30, was arrested Sunday on two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor in the first degree, a class D felony.
Siloam Springs police officer Mike Efram was dispatched at 7: 17 p.m. Sunday to West Alpine Circle on a welfare check, according to court documents.
Efram noticed a small child entering the residence as he pulled into the driveway; another child was looking out the front window, according to an affidavit in the case.
The officer learned that a 9-year-old boy was the child entering the residence, and his 2-year-old sister was looking out the window, according to court documents.
The officer asked the boy if anyone was at home with them, and the boy replied," No, I am watching sis while my mom is playing her Free 5 at the casino."
The boy told the officer his mother had been gone awhile, and that she leaves him to watch his sister a lot, the affidavit states.
The officer contacted dispatch to call the Arkansas Department of Health and Human Services, and he took the children to the Police Department.
Efram later made contact with Tomlinson, who said she had only left her children alone for about an hour. According to the affidavit, Tomlinson said a friend took her to Watts, Okla., to get a flat tire fixed, but the business was closed, so she and her friend stopped at the Cherokee Casino in West Siloam Springs, Okla., so she could play her Free 5 to try to win money for milk, the affidavit states.
Tomlinson is being held in the Benton County Jail in lieu of $ 5, 000 bond.
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