The Chattanooga Times Free Press
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The mother of an 8-month-old boy who was seriously burned in a kitchen fire Wednesday night has been charged with two counts of child abuse, police say.
Alisha Twitty, 23, has been charged with aggravated child abuse and child neglect after her son suffered second-degree burns to his face, arm and legs, said Chattanooga police spokeswoman Sgt. Jerri Weary.
The boy has been transferred to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Ga., for treatment.
Judge Christine Mahn Sell set Twitty’s total bond at $40,000 on Thursday, according to court documents.
Fire investigators said Twitty was heating a pan of grease to cook some french fries in her home at the Missionary Heights Apartments on Latimore Street. She went to a neighbor’s apartment three doors down to make a phone call, leaving the baby and a 2-year-old boy unattended, Chattanooga Fire Department spokesman Bruce Garner said.
The unattended pan flamed up and set the kitchen afire.
Twitty initially told police she had never gone inside the other apartment and could see her own front door the whole time. Later, though, she admitted she had been next door for about 10 minutes, according to an arrest report.
The 2-year-old was not injured.
Copyright 2011 Chattanooga Publishing Company