A 22-year-old woman is facing a child neglect charge after police said her 1-year-old daughter was found alone inside a vehicle outside a Miami Gardens shopping plaza while the mother was at a nearby beauty salon.
Miami Gardens police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded to the parking lot at 20401 NW 2nd Ave. at about 7:55 p.m. Friday after the child was discovered without an adult nearby. Fire-rescue personnel opened the vehicle and checked the toddler, who was found to be in good health.
Officers began looking for the child’s parent around the shopping plaza. They later located the mother, identified as Janina Joseph, inside a beauty salon on the building’s second floor.
According to the police report, Joseph told an officer she had arrived at the salon around 5 p.m. to have her hair done. Her daughter had reportedly remained alone in the vehicle for roughly three hours.
The child’s father was contacted and came to the shopping plaza. Police said the toddler was released to him at the scene.
Joseph was arrested at about 9:30 p.m. Friday and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. She faces one count of child neglect without great bodily harm.
Joseph appeared in Miami-Dade bond court Saturday, where her bond was set at $2,500. Court records show she was released Sunday.
Police also contacted the Florida Department of Children and Families regarding the incident. The agency is expected to conduct a follow-up investigation.
The case remains pending, and the allegations against Joseph have not been proven in court.
