PLANTATION, Fla. – A 27-year-old mother is facing charges of child abuse and other offenses after a 7-month girl was found outside of a car in Plantation bleeding, according to Plantation Police.
According to Plantation PD, they were called to the 4200 block of Peters Road at 4:52 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 21, after reports of a child crying near a vehicle. When an officer arrived at the scene 3 minutes later, they arrived to find a baby girl outside of the car with its head under the driver’s side front tire. The child was bleeding from her head and her clothing covered in blood, according to the arrest report.
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Police called Plantation Fire Rescue, who treated the child for a deep cut on top of the baby’s head, red welts and cuts on her face, and some small scratches. The baby was transported to the hospital.
Officers discovered a woman, later identified as Ashly Kestler of Boca Raton, inside the car seated on the driver’s side “passed out.” Police reported that the windows and doors were closed and that Kestler was observed “curled up” with both feet on the driver’s seat and leaning on the door. They said the car was turned off and that the keys were on the floor of the passenger’s side. Kestler was taken from the car to determine if “(she) was having a medical emergency or was under the influence of a substance.”
The investigation revealed that Kestler had been drinking, which caused her to “black out.” There was also an unsecured, loaded gun and a half-empty bottle of Hennessey brandy, which investigators noted both were within reach of the child when the 7-month-old was in the car.
They said the woman was unaware that the baby was no longer in the car. The investigation continues into whether the child somehow got out of the car on her own or if the baby was thrown from the vehicle.
Kestler was placed under arrest and taken to BSO Main Jail. She faces charges of aggravated child abuse and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. Police also discovered she had active warrants for driving with a suspended license in Broward County and a warrant in Dade County.