A woman from Springfield has been charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a child after her children were found alone for nearly 24 hours.
What We Know: Courtney Lynn Box, 29, was charged with three counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and one count of abuse or neglect of a child on July 8th.
Officers responded to a report of hearing banging sounds and a young child for nearly seven hours on January 10th. When they arrived at the house, firefighters observed a young child banging their head against a wall.
Crews gained access to the house through an unlocked window and found a set of 1-year old twins and a 4 month old infant alone and unsupervised inside. All three were very hungry and thirsty, had soiled diapers, and one twin had a head injury and swollen eye, according to reports.
Box told investigators that she had left the house that morning to go shopping and left the children under someone else’s care. But using Flock camera and Box’s phone data, investigators determined that Box had not been at the house nearly 24 hours before the police were called.
What It Means: All three children were taken to Mercy Hospital for evaluation. Medical professionals and the Child Advocacy Center found that all of the children had significant diaper rash and behavior consistent with neglect and maltreatment.
Box has multiple prior convictions, two of which being DWI, one for stealing, and a drug charge from 2022.
She is currently being held in Greene County Court with a $10,000 bond.
(Photo courtesy of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office)