Inset: Ashley Marie Bailey (McLennan County Detention Center). Background: The apartment complex where Bailey allegedly abandoned a baby outside (Google Maps).
A 26-year-old mother in Texas was arrested after she allegedly left a baby outside of the father”s apartment, notifying him about the infant’s whereabouts with a text message and daring him to notify authorities. Ashley Marie Bailey was taken into custody last week and charged with one count of abandoning or endangering a child without the intent to return, authorities confirmed to Law&Crime.
Under state law, the abandoning charge is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a maximum possible fine of $10,000.
According to an arrest report obtained by Law&Crime, the incident took place at about 2:05 a.m. on Aug. 20, at the University Terrace Apartments in the 1100 block Speight Avenue in Waco, Texas. The apartments are located about 100 miles south of Dallas.
Officers with the Waco Police Department responded to the address after receiving a call from the father about the baby being left outside the apartment door while strapped into a car seat, Waco CBS affiliate KWTX reported.
Upon arriving at the scene, the baby’s father spoke to officers, reportedly claiming that Bailey had left the child outside of his apartment and sent him a text message that read, “come and get your baby…[she] is at the door. Bye. Talk to you tomorrow.”
In another text message, Bailey allegedly dared the child’s father to turn her in for abandoning the baby.
“IDC. Call CPS on me,” she reportedly wrote, presumably referring to Child Protective Services. “Get your kid, bro.”
Another message reportedly read: “IDC anymore. Hope you get her or someone else is going to her so it’s going to be bad.”
Bailey sent the initial text message notifying the father that the child was outside of the apartment at 2:04 a.m., police said. However, the father told investigators he did not see the message for just over 40 minutes, during which time the baby was allegedly outside and unattended.
In several additional messages sent that evening, Bailey was reportedly pleading with the father to open the apartment door and retrieve the child.
Officers at about 3 a.m. went to Bailey’s home in the 700 block of Eagles Nest Drive and placed her under arrest and transported her to the McLennan County Jail for processing. She was later released on bond. It was not immediately clear when she was scheduled to appear in court again.
Authorities did not clarify Bailey’s relationship to the child and the police department did not immediately respond to a request for additional information from Law&Crime.
