Mom who returned to work, leaving injured daughter at home, cries in court when told she cannot have contact with kids

ASHLAND, Ohio -- (WJW) -- A 27-year-old mother, facing child endangering charges after her 8-year-old son shot her 4-year-old daughter, when the two were left home alone is expected back in court Wednesday.

“While home alone the 8-year-old shot the 4-year-old, 3 or 4 times with a .22 caliber rifle,” Ashland County Prosecutor Chris Tunnell said during a court hearing Monday.

Alyssa Edwards remains in the Ashland County jail on a $30,000 bond. Edwards appeared to cry during her video arraignment Monday when the magistrate told her she would not be able to have contact with her children while the case is pending.

Her court appointed attorney, Donald Wick, told the Fox 8 I-Team he did not get a chance to talk to his client yet so he was unable to discuss the case.

Tunnell said the mother of two left her children home alone when she went to work at 8 a.m. He said the father left for work earlier and believed the mother was going to drop the children off at a babysitter's.

The prosecutor said Edwards “became aware” that the child was injured around 10 a.m. and went home. The prosecutor did not say how the mother became aware that her daughter was hurt.

Tunnell said Edwards washed blood off of a bed cover, examined the child, and then returned to work. He said the mother returned home around noon and took the child to an emergency room around 2 in the afternoon.

Tunnell said Edwards did not notify the father until they were at the emergency room.

“At the time of that initial contact, quite frankly, he was lied to by this defendant,” Tunnell told the court.

If Edwards is released from jail, she must wear a GPS monitoring device and is not allowed to have contact with her children.