Police in North Carolina have charged a mother accused of abandoning her children on the side of a road and speeding away.
According to WTVD, a woman taking her child to school watched as 38-year-old Jennifer Westfall left her 9-year-old and 19-month-old on a street in Wake County on Oct. 2.
The witness picked the two children up and took them to school, where the school resource officer contacted Child Protective Services.
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Police said Westfall claimed she dropped the kids off at the school’s campus and watched a woman take them by the hand, believing it was a legal way to abandon the children.
However, only infants up to a week old can be legally abandoned with another adult under North Carolina’s Safe Surrender law.
“I feel terrible for what I did, I’ve always had my kids’ back no matter what,” Westfall told WTVD. “I was just so tired. Absolutely tired.”
Police charged Westfall with two counts of misdemeanor child abuse. Her children are now in foster care.
“I know what I did was wrong but I just, I was so tired of doing this by myself. I have the strength to do what I need to do but I don’t have the skills to make the income that I need to take care of my family, and nobody will hire me. I’ve been around everywhere. And with these charges I just don’t see how I’m ever getting my kids back,” Westfall said.
“I’ve always fought for my kids my whole life. I’ve always fought for them and I will fight no matter what,” she continued. “And I’ve always tried to do it on my own. I just can’t do it on my own.”
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