In a shocking incident at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Catoosa Police officers arrested a woman accused of leaving her 16-month-old child in a car for over five hours while she gambled.
Dacie Yeager initially claimed she had only been inside the casino for 20 minutes, but surveillance footage revealed a different story. According to the police, Yeager arrived at the Hard Rock at 9:30 a.m. and did not return to her car until police discovered the child shortly before 3 p.m.
Body camera footage shows officers rescuing the baby from the car in the casino’s parking lot. Security personnel noticed the car running with the baby locked inside and alerted the authorities. When approached by the police, Yeager hurried out of the casino.
Bodycam Footage
Here’s a snippet of the exchange captured on the body cam:
- Officer: “Ma’am, stop right there. Give me your ID right quick.”
- Officer: “Why are we leaving a baby in the car?”
- Yeager: “I went to go find his dad.”
- Officer: “This is stuff I put people in prison for. Why are we leaving an infant in the car?”
- Yeager: “I was literally out…”
- Officer: “We need to make sure this kid is okay.”
- Yeager: “I’m a nurse.”
- Officer: “Is the kid okay?”
Police allowed the mom to hold the baby and calm them down before transferring them to the hospital to be examined.
Yeager mentioned that her child who was born at 25 weeks, had medical issues, including a feeding tube that hadn’t been addressed. When the child was taken to the hospital, they found the baby in a filthy diaper. Yeager’s various explanations were contradicted by casino surveillance footage showing her inside the casino all morning. The baby’s dad was not present during the investigation.
Bodycam Footage
Chief Ronnie Benight of Catoosa Police emphasized the severity of the situation: “How irresponsible can you be? If you’ve got a problem, get help. Especially if it is to the point where you are endangering your children. Somebody could break into your car and steal the car, the car could quit running, the air conditioning could stop.”
Yeager has been charged with child neglect and bonded out of jail. The child is safe and in the care of child welfare services.
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