Pflugerville police have issued an arrest warrant for a woman for the felony of abandoning and endangering a child. Investigators are looking for 40-year-old Veronica Cannon, after they say she left her three boys home alone and tied 22-month-old daughter to a play pen.
In a brief call from KVUE News to Cannon's cell phone, she denied that she had tied her daughter to a play pen. She declined to do an on-camera interview or tell KVUE her whereabouts.
Cannon told investigators she had been tying the baby to a playpen since December. Police say she did it by stringing a piece of satin through the neck and armholes of the baby's clothing, then tying the satin to a jump rope, which was tied to the playpen. She said she did it to keep the baby from getting into things.
Amanda Van Hoozer with the Center for Child Protection, says tying of a child is never a good idea. “I cannot think of a circumstance where it is ever acceptable to use restraint as a form of supervision,” Van Hoozer said.
The investigation started when an officer responded to an anonymous complaint of child endangerment at the Westchester Woods apartments in Pflugerville on August 1.
The officer was met by a 10-year-old boy who answered the door. Inside, the officer noticed a strong stench of urine and feces. Right away, the officer found the baby, who was wearing a dirty diaper, tied to her playpen. The boy told the officer that his mother, Cannon, told him to keep the baby tied up to keep her from wandering at night. The officer noticed a mark all the way around the baby's ankle, as if something had cut into it.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Cannon admitted tying the child to the play pen by the ankle. Cannon told police that she never bonded with the baby, and that there was never a connection. Van Hoozer says a parent forming a bond is critical.
“Not having a bond with a child is a huge thing, it can be, because that's where your feelings of nurturing support, desire to do everything for that child, which is what a baby needs,” Van Hoozer said.
Police arrested Cannon on a separate outstanding warrant for felony theft by check. She was released on a $3,000 bond that day. Police say they have been looking for Cannon to arrest her for the child abandonment and endangerment charge ever since.
When police interviewed the children a short time later, their stories had changed. They told investigators they had tied the fabric to pull the playpen around, as part of a game.
