The parents of a child left locked in a vehicle without adult supervision at a Polk Bayou swimming hole in Independence County called “B Rock ” were arrested this weekend.
According to the incident report, Deputy Johnny Byler with the Independence County Sheriff’s Department responded to a 911 call Saturday night in reference to an infant locked inside a truck on B Rock Lane. The caller advised county dispatch that “…the mother and father of the child left the baby inside the truck and walked off.” The caller also stated the vehicle’s engine was off, and the windows were up, according to the report.
Byler arrived at the swimming hole around 11:30 p.m. along with Deputy Adam McGilton and Arkansas State Trooper Dustin Carpenter. Byler noted in the report he noticed flashlights and heard voices near the creek. At the locked truck, he saw the infant in the car seat with eyes closed, but he could not tell if the baby was breathing.
When his calls toward the voices were ignored, the deputy used his baton to bust out the driver’s window and then opened the vehicle. Byler removed the child, who was taken to Deputy McGliton in a patrol unit. The deputy noted the child was alert and awake, but was not crying or making any movements. After a few minutes slowly cooling off, McGilton said the child began to become more active and started crying.
The baby was fed after pre-made baby formula was found in the patrol unit, and McGilton also changed the baby’s diaper, noting it was “soaked with urine,” according to the report.
When Byler informed her she was under arrest for child endangerment, the deputy noted Ormsbee-Blount stated: “How am I in trouble? I gave that baby away when it was born.”
When Archove M. Noordhoek (pictured above, left), 45, of Desha, arrived from the creek area, he identified himself as the baby’s father and walked toward the truck. Byler then attempted to restrain Noordhoek, briefly scuffling with Noordhoek as he tried to get to the truck. Noordhoek was quickly cuffed and taken into custody.
Byler said a female subject identified as Stephanie A. Ormsbee-Blount (pictured, right), 39, later appeared “out of the woods” and stated she was the mother of the baby, according to the report. When Byler informed her she was under arrest for child endangerment, the deputy noted Ormsbee-Blount stated: “How am I in trouble? I gave that baby away when it was born.”
Byler noted that he could smell the odor of intoxicants on both Noordhoek and Ormsbee-Blount.
Noordhoek told authorities he was checking on the baby while he was “hanging out at the creek,” according to the report. Byler noted a witness told authorities the couple had been at the creek since 9 p.m. and saw the baby checked on once.
The infant was taken to White River Medical Center for an examination and was later released to personnel from the Arkansas Department of Human Services.
Both Noordhoek and Ormsbee-Blount were taken to jail and charged with endangering the welfare of a minor in the first degree, a felony.
Images via Independence County Sheriff’s Department
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