Child Endangerment Charge for Woman Who Left Kids on Porch: Plainfield Police

A Bolingbrook woman was arrested Tuesday night after allegedly leaving her two 5-year-olds on the porch of a home in Plainfield and driving off, police said.

Chanetta J. Prchal, 34, faces one count of child endangerment after police said she dropped her kids off at their father's house for a visit — while he wasn't at home.

Plainfield Sgt. Mike Fisher said the father told police he wasn't expecting Prchal to drop the children off until later in the evening and was not at home when she showed up early to his home in the 24000 block of Walnut Circle.

"He went to Walmart because she said it was going to be an hour or two," Fisher said. When Prchal arrived at the Walnut Circle home, Fisher said, "The kids walked up to the porch, and she drove away ... Unfortunately, you can't rely on a 5-year-old to get into the house by themself, and they were left without supervision."

Fisher said a neighbor called police after spotting the kids on the porch.

"A neighbor saw the little girl banging on the door, screaming, crying," he said. "They were obviously distraught."

Police were able to locate the children's father and returned the youngsters to his custody, Fisher said. 

According to the Northern Illinois FireGround Photos Facebook page, an alert went out around 8 p.m. warning police to be on the lookout for Prchal's vehicle, described as a gray 2011 Jeep.

Fisher said Bolingbrook police ultimately located Prchal at her home in the 100 block of Robinhood Way, where she was taken into custody.

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