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WEST JORDAN — A woman who was supposed to be watching an autistic child was arrested over the weekend for investigation of being intoxicated after the boy was found wandering alone by a gas station.
Debbie Shorten, 61, of South Jordan, was arrested for investigation of child abuse, intoxication and lewdness.
Sunday evening, West Jordan police were called to a gas station near Airport Road and the New Bingham Highway on a neglect call. Police say the gas station attendant noticed a 12-year-old boy was going in and out of the store a lot and didn't seem to have any parental supervision.
The boy had no verbal skills, could not communicate with officers and "repetitively attempted to run toward New Bingham Highway and Airport Road, two busy roads in West Jordan, however he was stopped by officers on scene," a Salt Lake County Jail report states. "The child could (be) hit by a car and been injured or killed if he was not continuously watched."
After staying with the boy for about 90 minutes, officers took him to the Christmas Box House.
Later, South Jordan police received a call of a lost child that matched the boy's description, according to the report. The boy was taken to the Division of Child and Family Services where one of the case workers recognized him.
When police made contact with Shorten, "it appeared the suspect was intoxicated due to her slurred speech, poor balance, poor memory and no recollection of losing the child. It appears that while intoxicated she was caring for a child. This is when she lost him, causing police to be called. She was unaware for approximately two hours the said child was no longer in her vehicle," the report states.
Shorten works for CTA Community, a nonprofit group that offers support to people with developmental disabilities such as autism. A CTA spokesman on Tuesday said his group was just looking into the allegations to find out what happened and declined comment.
Court records show Shorten was also cited for improper lookout on Sunday and was involved in an injury accident. It was not immediately known when on Sunday that happened. She was issued two other traffic citations in June, including one for negligent collision, according to court records.
