Early last Friday morning, September 6th, the Texarkana Police Department received a report of a child locked inside a vehicle on the fourth floor of the St. Michael Hospital parking garage. Upon arrival a few minutes later, officers found security personnel and several nurses already at the scene. They reported that someone had noticed the car’s engine running and saw an infant alone in a safety seat inside the vehicle. The child was safely removed through a window that had been left slightly open.
As officers attempted to locate the registered owner of the vehicle, Britney Petro approached and identified the car and child as hers. Petro explained that she had left her seven-month-old baby alone in the car because she was unable to find a babysitter that morning. She had left the child about 45 minutes earlier while she went into the hospital to report for her work shift and speak with her supervisor.
Petro was arrested for Abandoning or Endangering a Child and booked into the Bi-State Jail. Child Protective Services were notified and took custody of the child. Petro was released from jail on Friday afternoon after posting a $50,000 bond.
