Mother Charged After Police Find Feces, Rotting Food In Knoxville Home
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A woman is facing child endangerment charges after police say they found feces, rotting food, garbage and an overwhelming smell at the home she was living in with her children in Knoxville.
Police say the initial call about the house in the 200-block Marland Street complained of a smell of animal feces, trash outside and concern about children and animals living inside.
Police say when they went to check things out, they noticed a strong odor of animal waste right away.
Investigators say Jennifer Badamo answered the door. She told police she and her boyfriend had been homeless since September of last year, and they, along with her two children, ages 4 and 5, were living with her aunt Knoxville.
Police asked to go inside, but Badamo warned them, saying the house is "filthy and really bad" and that there were six small dogs inside.
One officer said the smell was overwhelming and he had to pull his t-shirt over his mouth and nose.
He offered this description of the home: "Because of the clutter, they could only enter through a small path. The kitchen was beyond deplorable, the sink filled with dishes, the living room, dining room and kitchen were filled with feces. There was rotting food in the refrigerator, the toilet was not working upstairs and there was a gallon jug half filled with urine."
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Neighbor Bill Lever says he had no idea.
"I saw her and the kids and I never put it together that there was anything wrong with them," he said. "They seemed like average people, truthfully, and I never smelled anything."
The children were taken to Children's Hospital where a CYF case worker took custody of them.
Badamo was taken to the Allegheny County Jail under a $10,000 straight bond for child endangerment.