Couple left toddler in car while drinking in bar, police say


4 photos
Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

DUCHESNE — A Duchesne County couple is facing felony charges after sheriff's deputies said they found the man and woman drinking inside a bar while their toddler slept in a cold car outside.

Sara Elizabeth Eitel and Jonathan Edward Dan Carver are each charged in 8th District Court with one count of child abandonment, a third-degree felony.

About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, a concerned citizen flagged down Duchesne County sheriff's deputy Brian Bybee and reported that there appeared to be a child sleeping in a car outside Well's Club, 47 E. Main.

When Bybee went to investigate, he said he found a boy sleeping in a car seat inside a red sedan. There was also a small dog inside the vehicle.

"The vehicle's engine was not running, and the hood of the vehicle was cold," Bybee wrote in his report. "Because the engine was shut off, the vehicle's heater was also not working/running."

The deputy noted that it was about 50 degrees outside and wrote that he became chilled during the 15 minutes he spent looking around the sedan, despite the fact that he was wearing a ballistic vest, long-sleeve uniform shirt, pants and a hat.

After ensuring that the child inside the car was alive, Bybee went into the bar to see if he could identify the owner of the vehicle.

"At first, no one spoke up or claimed ownership," the deputy wrote.


The vehicle's engine was not running, and the hood of the vehicle was cold. Because the engine was shut off, the vehicle's heater was also not working/running.

–Deputy Brian Bybee's police report


Then Eitel, 22, stepped forward and said the 3-year-old boy is her son. Carver, 25, also told the deputy that, although the boy is not his biological son, he and Eitel are raising the child together as if he were the boy's father, Bybee wrote.

Eitel and Carver told the deputy they'd been in the bar for "approximately one hour," according to Bybee's report. Bar employees, however said the couple had come in about 10 p.m. Saturday and had been there for at least 2 ½ hours when Bybee arrived, the report states.

Bybee said the pair gave him consent to search their car. Inside he found a half-empty bottle of whiskey and seven open containers of beer with liquid still inside, he said.

The boy in the car was taken to the Family Support Center in Roosevelt, where he was picked up by a worker with the state Division of Child and Family Services. Eitel and Carver were booked into the Duchesne County Jail.

Bybee said the couple agreed to take intoxilyzer tests at the jail. Eitel's test registered a blood-alcohol content of 0.158, while Carver's registered a 0.176, Bybee's report states.

Carver told deputies the "situation was his fault." He said Eitel wanted to leave the bar but he insisted they stay, the report states.

"When asked how they planned on getting home from the bar, Jonathan and Sara both stated they were unsure how they would have (gotten) home," Bybee wrote.

Eitel and Carver posted bail and were released from custody. Their first court appearances are set for April 21.

Photos

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

Utah
Geoff Liesik

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast