Woman accused of locking toddler outside house with dogs, other children in garage

A woman has been granted bail after being charged with child neglect. Photo: Albert McKnight.

A woman has been accused of locking a two-year-old girl outside her home and two other children inside a garage.

When she appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday (28 Monday), she said she believed she left the two-year-old with others then fell asleep after taking a codeine tablet and having a drink.

“I woke up to police ramming my door down,” she said.

The court heard one of the woman’s neighbours had called police on a night earlier in March 2022, claiming a two-year-old child had been locked outside the home with dogs.

The neighbour said they tried to get the attention of the home’s residents, but while they could hear yelling inside, no one answered.

They jumped the fence to collect the girl and gave her to police when they arrived.

Police allege the doors and windows of the home were locked and they were worried the woman could be injured. They say they entered the house and found her confused, smelling of liquor and asking where her daughter was.

She is also accused of locking two other children in a garage.

The woman was charged with neglecting a child, two counts of unlawful confinement, as well as two of resisting a public official but did not enter pleas.

She applied for bail, which was not opposed by prosecutor Archita Sreekumar as long as certain conditions were included, such as the woman not contact the two-year-old, which the woman objected to.

Ms Sreekumar also said Child and Youth Protection Services were conducting an urgent appraisal of the situation.

Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker granted bail on the condition the woman not contact any of the three children without agreement from relevant authorities.

Her matter will next appear in court later this year.

If this story has raised any concerns for you, 1800RESPECT, the national 24-hour sexual assault, family and domestic violence counselling line, can be contacted on 1800 737 732. Help and support are also available through the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre 6247 2525, the Domestic Violence Crisis Service ACT on 6280 0900 and Lifeline on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call 000.