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Case #10900 Rating: 2.2 out of 5
Five children neglected, chained dog in basement
New Carrollton, MD (US)Incident Date: Monday, Mar 5, 2007
County: Prince Georges
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 1 files available
Defendant/Suspect: Amara N. Eden
Case Updates: 6 update(s) available
New Carrollton officials are investigating whether an unlicensed child-care facility was being operated in the house where a woman was charged with leaving her five children unattended in a trash-strewn basement.
City officials said police saw several people trying to drop off children at the house where Amara N. Eden, 31, was arrested on March 5 on allegations that she left her five boys, ranging from 6 months old to 6 years, on a sheetless bed that reeked of urine and feces. One child, an infant, has cystic fibrosis.
In addition, police found a 1-year-old dog chained without food or water lying in its feces and urine in the basement of the single-family house in the 7600 block of Topton Street.
Eden is charged with five counts of leaving her children unattended and two counts of animal cruelty.
Each charge involving the children carries a maximum penalty of 30 days in jail if she is convicted, and each animal cruelty charge carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail.
City Manager Mike Downs said authorities also are looking into whether the single-family house had been illegally divided into three units occupied by at least two families.
Downs said the owners of the house tried to obtain a license to create two apartment units at that address in 2001, but the request was denied.
New Carrollton Police Chief David Rice said there have been a number of cases in which single-family homes were turned into multiple apartment units without the proper permits. "It is a big problem," he said.
Case UpdatesA mother is heading to jail after pleading guilty Thursday to leaving her five small children in squalid conditions, and to animal cruelty charges.
Amara Eden, 31, was arrested in March and charged with five misdemeanor counts of leaving a child alone and two counts of animal cruelty, after her young children and a dog were found in their basement home, in what police, prosecutors and neighbors have called horrible conditions.
Under the plea agreement, Eden will serve 20 days of a five-year suspended sentence. She must take parenting classes and spend five years on probation while not owning any pets during that time.
When police arrived at the New Carrollton house, they found Eden's five children -- ages 6 months to 6 years old -- showing signs of malnourishment and with bloodshot eyes. The children, who were also coughing up mucous, were taken to the hospital and later placed in foster care.
"The smell was so bad coming from the house that when they went in, they couldn't believe it," New Carrollton Police Chief David Rice said. "When I walked in, I was just so, so heartbroken to see that the kids were living under those conditions. They had a dog that was sleeping in its own urine and feces."
A private environmental testing company also found several dangerous airborne organisms in the home. | Source: WTOP - Aug 23, 2007
Update posted on Aug 24, 2007 - 2:14AM |
The trial date for Amara Eden has been postponed at the request of the defense.
Eden faces charges of child endangerment and animal cruelty stemming from in incident in March, when firefighters responding to a call allegedly found her five children living in deplorable conditions. The apartment was reportedly filled with garbage, dog waste, and roaches, and was declared uninhabitable.
A 1-year-old dog was found chained in the basement, lying in its own feces and urine, without food or water.
Eden's trial is now set for August 23 at 9:00 a.m. | Source: Prince George's County Case # CT070573X
Update posted on Jul 13, 2007 - 3:30PM |
Amara Eden is scheduled to appear in court next on July 10 at 9:00 a.m. Eden faces charges of child endangerment and animal cruelty.
Firefighters were called to Eden's basement apartment in the early morning hours of March 4 after reports of smoke and allegedly found her five children, all under the age of six, in deplorable conditions.
A 1-year-old dog was found chained in the basement, lying in its own feces and urine, without food or water.
The apartment was so filled with garbage, dog waste, and roaches that the entire house was declared uninhabitable. | Source: Case # CT070573-X
Update posted on Jun 19, 2007 - 2:10PM |
| According to court records, Amara N. Eden has been indicted on felony child endangerment and animal cruelty charges. She will appear next in Prince George's County Circuit Court on June 12 at 8:00 a.m. for a motions hearing. | Source: Case # CT070573-X
Update posted on Jun 5, 2007 - 1:15PM |
The mother in the notorious New Carrollton child neglect case has been granted release on $10,000 bond but faces five new charges for leaving her 5 children home alone in deplorable conditions.
31-year old Amara Eden now faces five charges of reckless endangerment one for each child, on top of previous abandonment and animal abuse charges.
Bond was originally withheld because Eden is from Nigeria and was considered a flight risk. One condition of Eden's release is that the turns over her passport, which she must return to her home to retrieve.
Firefighters were called to Eden's basement apartment in the early morning hours of March 4 after reports of smoke and found her children, all between the ages of six months to six years old, and their dog.
The apartment was so filled with garbage, dog waste, and roaches that the entire house was declared uninhabitable. Crews on the scene say it smelled horrible.
The smoke was caused by beans burning on the stove as the oldest child was trying to feed his siblings.
The five children, looked sickly according to paramedics and were taken to the hospital. They have since been placed into foster care.
The mother in the notorious New Carrollton child neglect case has been granted release on $10,000 bond but faces five new charges for leaving her 5 children home alone in deplorable conditions.
31-year old Amara Eden now faces five charges of reckless endangerment one for each child, on top of previous abandonment and animal abuse charges.
Bond was originally withheld because Eden is from Nigeria and was considered a flight risk. One condition of Eden's release is that the turns over her passport, which she must return to her home to retrieve.
Firefighters were called to Eden's basement apartment in the early morning hours of March 4 after reports of smoke and found her children, all between the ages of six months to six years old, and their dog.
The apartment was so filled with garbage, dog waste, and roaches that the entire house was declared uninhabitable. Crews on the scene say it smelled horrible.
The smoke was caused by beans burning on the stove as the oldest child was trying to feed his siblings.
The five children, looked sickly according to paramedics and were taken to the hospital. They have since been placed into foster care.
The dog was also taken into custody by animal control officers.
Bond was originally withheld because Eden is from Nigeria and was considered a flight risk. Her court date has been set for June 4.The dog was also taken into custody by animal control officers.
Bond was originally withheld because Eden is from Nigeria and was considered a flight risk. Her court date has been set for June 4. | Source: MyFox DC - March 14, 2007
Update posted on Mar 17, 2007 - 5:17PM |
A New Carrollton woman charged with leaving her five boys unattended in a squalid basement apartment will stay in jail until her trial in June and will likely undergo a psychiatric evaluation this week.
Police are investigating whether others living in the house were providing unlicensed day care, New Carrollton Police Chief David Rice said Wednesday.
Amara N. Eden, 31, faces five counts of leaving a child younger than age 8 unattended, and two counts of animal cruelty after police found her five children on a filthy mattress early Sunday morning while investigating a report of child neglect. A dog was chained nearby, wallowing in its own waste.
One officer said the squalor was the worst he had seen in more than two decades in law enforcement.
Charges involving the children carry a maximum penalty of 30 days in jail for each charge; charges involving the dog carry a maximum penalty of 90 days.
During a hearing Tuesday in Upper Marlboro, District Court Judge Jean S. Baron denied bond for Eden after a prosecutor said she might try to flee.
Bond for Eden, a native of Nigeria, had been set at $10,000. She also was ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
Eden told officers she ''would have gone someplace to commit suicide" if she had known police were going to arrest her when she returned from work early Sunday, according to police charging documents filed in District Court.
''The psychiatric evaluation will help determine the course of action for how we proceed," said Ramon Korionoff, a spokesman for Prince George's County State's Attorney Glenn F. Ivey (D).
A trial is scheduled June 4.
Assistant Public Defender Brendan Callahan, who represented Eden in court Tuesday, could not be reached for comment by press time Wednesday.
The conditions at the house in the 7600 block of Topton Street were discovered by New Carrollton Police investigating a report of child neglect at the house about 12:30 a.m. Sunday.
When they entered the basement apartment, officers found five children living in squalid conditions.
Sgt. Richard Hartnett said police could smell the apartment as soon as they got out of their cars.
Once inside, the stench was so intense ''we had to cover our noses up," he said.
The boys, from 6 months to 6 years old, were alone, hungry and dirty in the apartment on a mattress that smelled of urine and feces, according to court documents.
There were no sheets on the bed and there was broken furniture throughout the apartment.
A medium-sized dog was chained in the living room area in its own waste, the documents said.
Officers saw ''food rotting, with bugs all in it," Hartnett said, and an unattended pan of food was burning on the stove.
Rice, the police chief, noted black mold in the apartment and said, ''When you walk on the carpet, water would bubble up around your footsteps."
''I've been in some rundown places over the 25 years I've been in law enforcement, but I've never been in one that bad with people living in it," Hartnett said.
A resident who lives in another part of the one-story house and called police told officers that Eden works 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. several nights a week and leaves the children unattended, according to court documents. She has lived in the house for about two years, according to the resident.
Eden was still at work at a nursing home in the District when police responded. Police had called Eden and notified her of the situation. She returned to the house about 1:45 a.m. and was arrested, according to court documents.
Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department staff determined all five children required medical attention, including the youngest, a 6-month-old with cystic fibrosis.
A caseworker from the Department of Protective Services stayed with the children as they were evaluated at Prince George's Hospital Center in Cheverly.
She determined that because of their ages and the conditions in which they live the children had to be removed from the apartment and placed in foster care, charging documents stated.
The Division of Animal Control took the dog.
Korionoff, of the prosecutor's office, said other or more serious charges against Eden ''are within the realm of possibility, but we have to assess the situation further."
Rice also said Wednesday that police are investigating whether other residents in the house were running a day care there without a permit.
Charges also could be filed if it is determined that the landlord, who is responsible for providing a safe, clean and livable environment, was aware of the conditions in which Eden and her children lived. The landlord is mandated to report such conditions, Rice said. Tax records show the property is owned by Azmat and Mohammed Asif. Attempts Wednesday to reach the homeowners were unsuccessful.
The house has been condemned and will not be reopened until a cleaning company comes in ''and abates the whole place," Rice said. ''No one can go back in that house without wearing protective gear." | Source: Gazette.Net - March 8, 2007
Update posted on Mar 12, 2007 - 3:36AM |
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