Absent mom arrested by Lemoore PD for leaving child alone in apartment

On Tuesday, October 7, at about 7:30 p.m. a Lemoore police officer was arrived at an apartment in Lemoore for a report that a young child had been left alone. When the officer arrived he was contacted by the reporting party, who lives next to the baby and her mother, 28-year-old Coral Baker.

The neighbor told the officer that Baker had contacted her via text messages at about 4 p.m. and asked if she could watch her child because she had been ill and wanted to go to the doctor. The neighbor responded that she could not watch the child.

About 30 minutes later the neighbor heard a child crying and choking. She went to Baker’s apartment but there was no answer at the door. The door was unlocked so she went inside and found the child on the floor in her bedroom. There were crackers on the floor and the child had vomited on herself.

The neighbor took the child to her apartment and cleaned her up. She then text messaged Baker and told her what happened. Baker responded that she was just down the street but she never returned to the apartment. Officers were at the apartment for two hours before Baker returned home. Baker told the officer that she went to a doctor’s appointment and then to Earlimart to visit a friend.

Baker was found to be under the influence of a controlled substance and in possession of prescription pills that were not prescribed to her. She also carried a switchblade knife.

Baker was arrested for felony child endangerment, possession of a controlled substance, being under the influence of a controlled substance, and possession of a switchblade knife. She was booked at the Kings County Jail and her bail was set at $70,000.  Her child was turned over to Kings County Child Protective Services.