A man is set to appear in Pierce County court on Monday after being arrested for allegedly leaving his 4-year-old daughter alone on the side of the highway over the weekend.
Morgan Barnes, 35, is charged with child abandonment after his daughter was discovered on the side of State Route 512 Saturday afternoon by other drivers.
According to probable cause documents, a Washington State Patrol trooper was going west on SR 512 when he noticed multiple vehicles on the shoulder and people attempting to flag down his vehicle. A witness informed WSP that Barnes pulled over on the road, grabbed a young child from his backseat, and placed her near the fog line before driving away.
The witnesses had pulled over and stopped the child from entering the traffic. The trooper spoke with Barnes at the scene, who told WSP that the child was “disruptive and loud in the vehicle and was not listening to him.” He acknowledged leaving his daughter on the side of SR 512 “as a form of discipline.” According to records, the child had no visible injuries and “was in good spirits” when contacted by the WSP officer.
Barnes was arrested, and since the child’s mother was in the army overseas, another family member was to pick up the child.
“It is important to note that, had it not been for the prompt actions of the witnesses, the child could have been seriously injured or abducted,” wrote the WSP trooper in the probable cause documents.
Barnes will be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. Monday.