Mother of Children Left at Hospital Held
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The mother of three children abandoned in a National City hospital was arrested Sunday afternoon in Barstow, authorities said.
Deanna Peters, 22, and her boyfriend, Richard Byford, 20, were booked on suspicion of child abandonment by the Barstow Police Department. The pair were returned to the National City Police Department Sunday night.
About 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a woman entered the waiting room of Paradise Valley Hospital and asked a stranger to watch her children, all boys, ages 4, 2 and 5 months. Police said she told the stranger that she needed to fetch her wallet from the car, but she never returned.
The children were taken to Hillcrest Receiving Home. Having seen photographs of the children on local news broadcasts Saturday night, the grandmother of the children “provided us with information regarding the mother and boyfriend,” said Sgt. Don Berstler of the National City Police Department.
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