TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Florida woman is facing charges after she allegedly left her infant alone in a crib on Thanksgiving night to go to the bar.
Deputies say Victoria Hidalgo, 37, of Port Charlotte left for the bar after she fired a gun into the front door of her home on Thanksgiving evening.
Police were called to the home after a woman said she received a call from Hidalgo who “sounded as though she was under the influence of alcohol” and stated she fired a gun inside the home.
When the woman arrived to check on the home, she noticed their shared vehicle was not in its parking space and found a bullet in the front door.
When deputies arrived, they were let inside the home where they found a child left in a crib unsupervised.
During an investigation, detectives learned the shared vehicle was stopped by deputies later that night. Hidalgo was reportedly in the front passenger seat alongside a male driver.
Police say Hidalgo’s eyes were bloodshot and watery, her breath smelled of alcohol and her speech was slurred when she was questioned.
The man told police he just met Hidalgo at the Paddy Wagon Irish Pub. He added that he was concerned Hidalgo was going to drive home in a very intoxicated state so offered to help her get home safe.
Police say he did not have any knowledge of the situation at the home.
“There is no excuse for an infant to be left in a home alone, nor is there a good explanation for the discharge of the firearm,” said Sheriff Bill Prummell of the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office. “It is clear that this woman’s priorities are way out of order, and I hope this experience serves as a wake-up call for her.”
Hidalgo was taken into custody on a charge of child neglect without great bodily harm. She was taken to the Charlotte County Jail and is currently out on a $3,500 bond.