ACT Magistrates Court: woman charged with child neglect bailed

The ACT Magistrates Court has heard a neighbour saved a two-year-old girl found locked outside of her home.

A court has heard of a brave neighbour who jumped a fence to save a two-year-old girl locked outside of her house.

The mother of the two-year-old faced the ACT Magistrates Court charged with neglecting a child, two counts of unlawfully confining a person and two counts of resisting a public official.

The prosecutor told the court a neighbour of the woman heard the child outside at 7.45pm on Sunday evening.

The neighbour saw the young child was locked out of the house and was left alone with two dogs, and heard yelling from inside the property.

At this time the neighbour called the police and jumped over the fence to retrieve the child and noticed all windows and doors to the property were locked.

When police arrived the woman was allegedly intoxicated and did not comply with the directions of officers.

The woman’s two older children were found locked in a converted garage on the property.

A woman has faced court charged with neglect, forcible confinement and resisting public officials. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

The defendant told the court she had a bad headache and fell asleep after taking a codeine tablet and alcoholic drink.

“I woke up to police at my door,” the defendant said.

The court heard all three children were now in the care of family friends.

Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker said she would grant bail on the conditions the woman did not drink or take drugs, and would not contact her three children.

The woman said she was happy with all conditions except for the condition baring her from seeing her child.

“How long will I go without seeing her?” she said.

“I had a headache.”

The woman will appear again at the ACT Magistrates Court to enter a plea on April 20.