Babysitter jailed after kids go for joyride and crash car into tree
CLOVER, S.C. -- South Carolina police say two children went for a joyride and crashed their babysitter's car into a tree, and the woman who was supposed to be watching them is now in jail.
The Herald of Rock Hill reports 30-year-old Mary Frances Harmon of Clover faces child neglect and drug charges.
A police report said a 9-year-old child told officers after the crash that Harmon told them she was leaving him and his 6-year-old sister unattended to go meet someone Thursday. Neither child was hurt.
In court, Harmon said the children took her car keys, adding that she noticed the children were gone when she got out of the shower.
Inside Harmon's wrecked car, police found hydrocodone pills. Harmon claimed the children put the pills in her car, WSOC-TV reports.
A neighbor said she passed the kids in her car while the 9-year-old drove the vehicle and waved at her.
"I saw the crash over there, and I see the kids, I'm like, 'Wow,'" she told the WSOC-TV. She said she was nervous because the mobile home park where the kids live is just feet away from a busy highway.
Harmon is jailed on a $16,000 bond, and it's not known if she has an attorney.