A North Vernon man faces three felony charges after he let his girlfriend’s 2-year-old child leave their residence, police report.
Eddie Swindall III, 30, faces a preliminary Level 6 felony charge of neglect of a dependent.
He also faces Level 6 felony charges of possession of a controlled substance and violation of the Legend Drug Act and a Class B misdemeanor charge of possession of paraphernalia after police found prescription drugs not prescribed to him in the home.
Officers with the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department were called to Country Squire Lakes at 8:31 a.m. on a report of a 2-year-old who was in the street without an adult around. The child was walking in the area of Bending Willow Way and Wildwood Road, according to a news release from the department.
Officials with the Division of Family and Children took the child while police tried to find its parents.
Officers canvassed the neighborhood, and Sheriff Kenny Freeman was able to make contact with a resident who knew where the child’s home was located.
Officers located the residence around 11 a.m. and found Swindall was asleep when the child left through the back door of the home.
"We don’t think the child was outside very long," Chief Deputy David Turner said.
Police also found prescription drugs that were not prescribed to Swindall in the residence.
Swindall was booked into the Jennings County Jail in North Vernon, where he was being held on a $1,055 bond.
A Level 6 felony is punishable between six months and two and a half years upon conviction.
