Toddler Found Wandering Alone At Apartment Complex; Babysitter Suspected Of DUI
VACAVILLE (CBS) - Two teenagers are being hailed as heroes after they noticed something wasn't right at their apartment complex and called the police.
"I was scared for her," said Lizet Vazquez.
It was dark, about 9:30 p.m. It wasn't where you'd expect to find a toddler alone.
"She was crying. She had a tissue," continued Vazquez.
She found three-year-old Daphne near the Lincoln Corner Apartment pool fence.
"Someone could have took her or she could have walked to the street and got hit by a car," said Vazquez.
She and her friend Julio are being called heroes after they notified police about the child.
"We tried to keep her as calm as possible," said Sgt. David Spencer with the Vacaville Police Department, "We gave her a teddy bear."
Daphne was okay. Her mom, Jessica Shephard, had just got home from work when she was greeted by distraught neighbors.
"Don't worry; don't worry; your baby is okay; she is with the police. I was so confused," said Shephard.
Shephard had left her only child with the babysitter for the night.
"She's my everything," said Shephard as she began tearing up, "I don't have anything else."
Upset and concerned, Shephard wanted to know: where was the babysitter?
Police say while Daphne was wondering around near the pool for more than a half hour, other officers were investigating a DUI crash a few blocks away.
The driver had hit a light pole. Behind the wheel was Shephard's babysitter, Kathleen Stevens.
In a breathalyzer test, it was found 51-year-old Stevens had a blood alcohol content of .249 -- more than three times the legal limit.
"We were able to confirm that the driver of the vehicle in the DUI collision was actually the babysitter who was missing," said Sgt. Spencer.
A lesson learned.
"You just never know," said Shephard.
She says she is forever grateful to the two quick-thinking teens.
"She [Shephard] was crying, said she owed me her life and she hugged me," said Vazquez, "She said thank you so much."
We went to Stevens' home and she was not there.
According to the police report, she told investigators she left because she was sick and then later said there was a family emergency. She's now facing a misdemeanor DUI charge and a felony child cruelty charge.
Shephard used Care.com to find a babysitter. She had used Stevens three times in the past. Stevens is no longer listed on the website.
