A Chandler woman facing a felony charge of child neglect has pleaded guilty and has been handed a suspended prison term.
A formal charge of child neglect was filed in July against Megan Rae Eckert, 34. A $20,000 bench warrant was originally issued the same day but it was returned and filed the following day.
Appearing before District Judge Cindy Ashwood recently, Eckert pleaded guilty as the result of a plea bargain agreement.
The court found her guilty as charged and Judge Ashwood handed Eckert a five-year suspended prison term.
She was also assessed a $500 fine, $100 VCA and court costs. She was placed in supervised and Community Sentencing and is to follow all the rules and conditions of the program, the court records state.
Judge Ashwood ordered her to report to Community Sentencing and to report to the Court Clerk’s Cost Administrator.
Eckert made her initial appearance before Special Judge Emily Mueller on July 28. Her pre-preliminary hearing was scheduled for Aug. 18.
The felony accused Eckert on June 25 of abandoning her child with initials AB, when Eckert was responsible for the health, safety and welfare of the child by failing to provide adequate food, clothing, sanitation, hygiene and appropriate education for the child and by failing to provide medical and dental care for the child.
Chandler Police Officers Chris Hawkins and Tammi Bateman responded to a call that was reported as an attempted burglary.
In an application for an arrest warrant, Hawkins stated the calling party, identified as James Furgerson, reportedly was in the company of six juvenile males and females from ages 12-17.
AB advised officers she had not seen her mother, Eckert, for three or four days and prior to that she hadn’t seen her mother for an undetermined amount of time because her mother refused to come home.
Furgerson stated that Eckert was somewhere in the Chandler area in the company of another guy but he didn’t know where Eckert was residing. Furgerson told officers he is no relation to AB or AB’s daughter and is the ex-boyfriend of Eckert.
AB told officers her mother doesn’t provide for her by any means. She’s left to utilize Furgerson and friends to make ends meet.
The officers reported they discovered the house was in disarray, dirty clothes and trash strewn all over the house and the smell of animal urine and feces was overwhelming.