MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — A Mesa mother is facing child abuse charges for allegedly leaving her toddler in a sweltering garage and exposing him to dangerous drugs late last month.
Police say on July 29, a neighbor called 911 and reported that Amy Shellhammer, 32, left her 2-year-old alone in the garage at her home near Lindsay and Broadway roads. Court documents state that Shellhammer texted her neighbor, “I’m leaving [child] is in the garage. I’m sicker than [expletive]….he’s asleep.”
The neighbor told police that she was very worried since the garage had no air conditioning and was extremely hot, according to authorities. When the neighbor went over to the home, she found the toddler asleep, but had trouble waking him up. She said it took her 20 to 30 minutes to wake up the boy after getting him out of the hot garage, according to court documents.
On Aug. 1, the Arizona Department of Child Safety took custody of the toddler. During a medical visit, officials discovered the boy had fentanyl, methamphetamine and THC in his system, court documents state…