Woman Arrested For Child Neglect Lashes Out At Judge
POMPANO BEACH (CBS4) -- A Pompano Beach woman arrested for child neglect had a few choice words for Broward County Judge John Hurley when he ordered her to not have any contact with her children.
Shantegra Godfrey, is accused of leaving her three kids -- ages 1,2 and 4 -- home alone for several hours on Thursday while she was "running errands," according to a Broward Sheriff's Office arrest report. The report says a neighbor heard the children crying and called 911, telling deputies that this was not the first time the children were left home alone. In court Friday, Hurley read a section from the report.
"The smallest child was only wearing a diaper that was soiled," Hurley said. "The house was dirty. The electricity was not on because of non-payment. The food in the refrigerator was spoiled."
Godfrey told the judge that she left her kids with a neighbor. But Judge Hurley informed Godfrey that he was making a tough decision about her immediate future with her children.
JUDGE: "I'm gonna order that you have no contact with your children and I don't like doing that but I think that's necessary. (GODFREY WALKS AWAY) Come on back, ma'am."
GODFREY: "This is (BLEEP). My kids was with somebody."
JUDGE: "Come on back, ma'am."
A short time later, Godfrey again expressed her displeasure with the judge's decision.
JUDGE: "I don't think you're responsible right now."
GODFREY: "How? I go to work. I go to (BLEEPING) work, man. I work for a living."
JUDGE: "So the court's gonna order…"
GODFREY: "This is (BLEEP) man."
Judge Hurley gave Godfrey a bond of $3-thousand dollars.
Later Friday, at a shelter hearing for her children, Godfrey wept during the hearing. The Department of Children and Families said they were working with a relative of Godfrey's in hopes of placing the children in the relative's care.
DCF says they do have a prior history with Shantegra Godfrey. In court it was revealed that Godfrey has been arrested before. She was charged with grand theft out of Boca Raton earlier this year.
