DESTIN, FL – According to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, a woman at a Destin restaurant was arrested Monday afternoon after she passed out on the deck while a one-year-old child was in her care.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office has charged 27-year old Ariel Hope of Miramar with child neglect, without great bodily harm.
Deputies who responded to 10 Harbor Boulevard had difficulty waking up the woman, who was not able to stand on her own or rationally answer questions.
A witness told deputies at one point the toddler appeared to be choking on a cherry and Hope told her to “#&#S@ deal with it”.
The witness says Hope also fell to the ground with the child in her hands. The witness cared for the toddler until deputies arrived. The one-year-old was dressed in a thin single layer of clothing, while the temperature was approximately 60 degrees with a cold wind.