7-year-old found alone with wild horses; woman charged with abuse
PAHRUMP — A Pahrump woman is behind bars for abuse after authorities say they found a child wandering unsupervised with wild horses near Bourbon Street.
A deputy from the Nye County sheriff’s office was dispatched to check on the welfare of the child around 9:10 a.m. July 6 after being contacted by a woman who lived approximately a half-mile away from the child’s home, a police report said.
“I identified (the) child as a 7-year-old who stated he was kicked out of his home,” Deputy Cody Cunningham said in the report. “I was under the impression the child was experiencing mental suffering when he was told to leave. He also said that he had no home.”
State agency contacted
The report said the child had been wandering around in the area for approximately an hour or more after allegedly being “kicked out” of his home. Though the child was unable to provide his home address, deputes were assisted by Department of Child and Family Services officials in locating his residence.
“Upon arrival at the home, we contacted Pamela Warnock, who had care and custody of the child that morning,” Cunningham’s report stated. “She was not visibly worried or stressed. Everyone was in the home and no one was currently looking for the child. When I asked if all the children were accounted for, Pamela said, ‘Yes, all but one,’”
Breakfast time
When asked about the circumstances of the wandering child, Warnock told deputes that the child broke into a locked kitchen cabinet to make oatmeal for the whole family, according to the report.
“Pamela disciplined the child by telling him to go stand outside of the front door and allowed him to remain there unsupervised,” the report said. “Pamela stated that anytime the child was left unsupervised, he was known to take off from the home. There was a fenced backyard where the child could have been disciplined in a secure location, but Pamela chose to leave the child in an unsecured location outside of the front door instead.
“Pamela claims she noticed the child had left the vicinity of the home and claims to have looked for him. Pamela was in sandals and pajama clothing. Pamela confirmed that the child had been missing for over an hour and Pamela did not contact authorities for assistance.”
Following the initial investigation, Warnock was arrested on one count of alleged child abuse/neglect.
“She allowed the child to remain outside of the home, unsupervised and failed to check on him which allowed him to walk approximately a half-mile barefoot and end up playing with wild horses where he may have been harmed or killed,” the report concluded.
Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes.