NATION : Mother Locked Child in Trunk
NEWARK, N.J. — A woman who said she couldn’t find a baby-sitter she could trust locked her 5-year-old daughter in the trunk of her car while she worked at a shopping mall, police said. Chante Fernandez, 24, of Elizabeth was charged with criminal restraint and freed on $5,000 bail. Her daughter, who was not hurt, was placed in protective custody.
The woman, who could get up to five years in prison and a $7,500 fine if convicted, was arrested Saturday after shoppers at the Woodbridge Center mall parking lot heard sounds coming from the car trunk.
Officers said they found the girl inside with a blanket, a coat, a flashlight, a book, a stuffed animal and a doughnut.
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