Etters-area woman sentenced for child-endangerment incidents
An Etters-area woman who pleaded no contest to charges she left her young children inside a parked car last winter twice in two days while she shopped at Walmart was sentenced Thursday to 120 days to 23 months behind bars, according to online court records.
Amanda Lynn Gonzalez, 31, of 560 Cartref Road in Newberry Township, received credit for 143 days time served in York County Prison, and will be transferred back to Berks County, where she will serve more time, according to York County Prison records.
She was sentenced two years' probation, which will be concurrent to jail time she serves. Gonzalez has to receive a mental health evaluation and then comply with its conclusions and instructions from the York County Office of Children, Youth and Families, records state.
Background: She told police she locked her car before leaving the children alone inside it during the second incident, and said "it was not a big deal," charging documents state.
Gonzalez told officers she knows Walmart has security cameras, so "even if someone would take her car," police would be able to "see who did it and get a license plate number."
Law enforcement was first notified about Gonzalez on Feb. 11, when a Walmart customer called 911 to report an unattended infant left in a black 2005 Acura that was parked but left running in the lot of the Newberry Township Walmart at 50 Newberry Parkway.
The caller said he reported it to Walmart staff, then waited with the car for 10 minutes until a woman — later identified as Gonzalez — came out of the store, police said. He confronted her about leaving the infant alone, at which point Gonzalez became argumentative, according to police.
"She stated to (him) that she did nothing wrong and stated the child was safe," after which she drove away, charging documents state.
During the Feb. 11 incident, Gonzalez left her 10-month-old son alone in the car from 8:04 p.m. to 8:27 p.m., according to police, who said Gonzalez told him she had the heat running in the car for the 10-month-old.
Toddlers in car: The next day, a Walmart employee reported that a woman in a black Acura left two toddlers alone in the car for about an hour as the woman shopped, with the car turned off, according to police.
Police later determined Gonzalez parked her car in the Walmart lot about 3 a.m. and left her 2-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son in the car until 4:23 a.m.
The car was turned off, according to police, who said the low temperature for that morning was 12 degrees.
The children were screaming and crying, documents state.
Gonzalez told officers she locked the car before going into Walmart.
— Reach Sean Cotter at scotter@yorkdispatch.com.