Crime & Safety

Father Taken Into Custody for Child Neglect After Passing Out with Kids at Home

Mount Pleasant Police answered a child welfare call and discovered two youngsters at home with their dad who was passed out in the hallway.

A Mount Pleasant father is in custody after police say they found him passed out in the hallway of his house with his kids at home.

Shawn Stewart, 32, is charged with two counts of misdemeanor child neglect and three counts of felony bail jumping. If convicted of all charges, he could face up to 19 years in prison and/or up to $50,000 in fines. Stewart is currently out on bond from possession and disorderly conduct charges, and a condition of his bond is that he is not to have any alcohol.

According to Mount Pleasant Police, officers arrived at Stewart's home at 10:10 pm Wednesday after Stewart's children, ages eight and four, called their mother while she was out of town and told her that Stewart was "passed out drunk in the hallway." She reportedly let police know that two large pit bulls were also in the house but they were friendly.

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Loud barking greeted officers when they knocked on the front door but no one answered so the police looked in the windows of the residence to try and locate any children. While they didn't see the kids in question, they did see a person lying facedown in the hallway.

After almost 30 minutes of trying to get someone to answer the door, officers made contact with one of the children and managed to get one of the dogs to the backyard where it was secured on a chain. The other dog was a little more aggressive, but officers managed to corral it into a bedroom and shut the door.

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After South Shore rescue arrived, it took another 10 minutes to rouse Stewart. He supposedly became belligerent and demanded to know why officers were in his house without his permission. At this point, police took Stewart into custody and administered a portable breath alcohol test which showed a .167 blood alcohol level.

Relatives arrived to take the children until their mother returned from her trip.

Stewart was booked into the Racine County Jail where he remains on a $2,500 cash bond. His next court date is a preliminary hearing on July 18 before Court Commissioner Alice A. Rudebusch.


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