3-year-old found wandering wearing only a diaper in Troy; mother charged

TROY — A 3-year-old boy was found alone and only wearing a diaper out in the cold during the overnight hours earlier this week in Troy.

Now, his mother is facing child endangering charges.

While it was not as cold as it is now, it was still only about 40 degrees around 2 a.m. Monday when the child was found after he wandered from his home in the first block of McClung Street, only about four blocks from the Troy Police Department on Mulberry Street.

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Not only was the child underdressed for the conditions, but if he had gone too far in the wrong direction, he could have wandered into even greater peril, Troy police Capt. Shawn McKinney said.

“It’s a pretty quiet area of town, but it is fairly close to the railroad tracks,” McKinney said. “Luckily, this lady just happened to be out smoking a cigarette at night.”

The woman who called 911 told police the boy ran to her and said he couldn’t find his mom, and that he was shaking.

“The circumstance we believe that there were alcohol and drugs involved with this and the officers felt the best course of action was to bring the child to a different caregiver and to arrest the woman that was in charge of the child,” he said.

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His mother, identified by police as 33-year-old Toni M. Woodward, has pleaded not guilty to child endangering charges filed against her in Miami County Municipal Court, where she is scheduled to next appear on Dec. 12.

The child is now with his grandmother, police said.