OHIO MAN BLOCKED TRAFFIC TO PREVENT NAKED KIDS FROM BEING HIT BY AN EXPLORER -
MOTHER CHARGED WITH CHILD NEGLECT.

by Tony Rutherford
Huntington News Netowrk Columnist

Huntington (HNN) -- With temperatures in the 20s, rain falling and winds blowing, two boys ages two and four wandered naked Wednesday night at the intersection of First Street and Sixth Avenue, James Barker was driving his truck down Sixth Avenue. He saw the children holding hands ready to stroll out into the street. Coming in their direction was an Explorer.

“I saw an Explorer coming my way,” said Barker who lives in Ohio. He did a U-turn onto the wrong side of the street to block the Explorer. “The driver was a little irate until he saw what I was doing.” Barker used his truck to keep the kids from leaving the sidewalk, hopped out, gave one of them his shirt, and the other his coat.

Lynn Parsons and her husband Rodney were coming down First Street. “I saw them skipping down the sidewalk,” Mrs. Parsons explained. “They were almost hit by a car.”

She credited Barker with preventing a tragedy. But Barker has a humble attitude about his pre-Christmas heroics.

When he saw the two boys clad only in diapers on the street, he thought, “What are these babies doing out here in the rain? They’re not old enough to walk in the yard alone.” Praised by this reporter for his actions, the modest father said, “I figure anyone with a heart would do it. It was my time to step up and help.”

When police officers arrived, they joined the motorists in hunting for an open door.

They entered a residence at 520 Rear First Street and found a one to two month baby girl in a feces filled diaper.

A woman identified as a grand mother and/or great grandmother could not even provide the children’s names.

Cabell County EMS transported the three children to Cabell Huntington Hospital where they were treated for lice and severe diaper rash. The Hospital decided to keep the children for observation.

At 2:45 a.m., police charged their mother, Samatha Lester, 21, with three counts of felony child neglect. Described in police reports as a “known crack addict and prostitute,” the woman told officers she had left the children in the care of the relative at 7:45 p.m. to go to the store.

When Ms. Lester was taken into custody, she was also infested with lice.

In addition to the immediate actions by Huntington police officers --- Rod Pell and Craig Preece, Cabell County EMS and professionals at CHH, HNN would like to extend a “thank you” to these civilian heroes: Donna Eplion, Rodney and Lynn Parsons, James Barker, and Teresa McKenzie. By getting involved and stopping to assist, you demonstrated the type of spirit for helping others that should be extended at all times during the year.

Although the three children have been placed in state custody, Baker said, “They weren’t properly taken care of.” He could smell their body odor when he donated his coat and shirt to keep them warm. “Any condition supervised by the state will be better for them.”

Tony Rutherford can be reached at trutherford@huntingtonnews.net.