Kissimmee mom booked after deputies find four kids alone

Irene Miller was handcuffed as she walked through the airport terminal on Friday morning. Deputies met her at the gate after she landed from Las Vegas. The 50-year-old mother was booked into the Orange County Jail on four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm.

The arrest followed a 911 call placed by one of Miller’s children on Wednesday. The caller reported that a dumbbell fell on the head of her 9-year-old brother. Deputies arrived at the Kissimmee home shortly after 8:30 p.m. on October 21. They found four children, aged 9, 11, 12, and 14, in the house with no adults present. Fire rescue crews transported the injured boy to Celebration Hospital, where he was treated and released.

Miller told deputies she was working in Las Vegas and had left Florida on October 18. She said she expected to return on October 23. Miller described an arrangement where a babysitter from Tampa would visit in the mornings to help the children get ready for school. The sitter was not required to stay overnight, according to the sheriff’s office. Authorities contacted the children’s father, who agreed to take all four kids to his home.

Sheriff Chris Blackmon stated that the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office will not tolerate child neglect. He said these cases will be investigated and charges will be brought against parents who are not properly supervising their children. Body camera footage shows deputies approaching Miller as she exited the plane and escorting her to booking.