A West Monroe woman is charged with cruelty to a juvenile after leaving her one-year-old child with strangers. Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s spokesperson Glen Springfield says witnesses say the woman, 28-year-old Tiera Mooney, was wet and holding a baby when she knocked on their door and gave them the child and began to leave.
“Came back, kissed the kid on the head, and then said, ‘I can’t do this anymore,’ and left them in custody of the child, at which point, they called us. They didn’t know who the lady was,” said Springfield.
Deputies later located the woman in a small wooded area not far from the residence. Springfield says Mooney was also charged with criminal trespassing for heading to the next-door residence.
“She’d gone next door, and it looked like she had maybe gone through a Jeep next door, and then we found her walking away from that residence and she was identified as the person that had left the child with the strangers,” said Springfield.
Springfield says a motive is unclear.
“She didn’t furnish any information other than she really appeared to be maybe impaired and was not real coherent,” said Springfield.
Bail has not been set.
