West Virginia woman charged after daughter leaves home in handcuffs and seeks neighbor’s help

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A West Virginia woman was arrested Monday after her handcuffed daughter sought help from a neighbor, police said.

Officers in Charleston found the girl on a neighbor’s porch, Lt. Tony Hazelett said in a news release.

The woman was charged with child abuse and unlawful restraint. She was being held on $10,000 bond at the Southcentral Regional Jail. Jail records did not indicate whether the woman had an attorney who could comment on the charges on her behalf.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Kanawha County Superior Court, the woman told police she handcuffed her child Sunday night because the girl was making a mess, “stealing” and hiding food and trying to leave without permission. Officers who responded to the home described it as “extremely messy.”

The police statement did not disclose the girl’s age. The woman said in her summons that she had four children with her, ranging in age from 3 to 16, WCHS-TV reported.

A preliminary hearing was scheduled for October 2.