SAFFORD – On the night of Dec. 31st just after 11:00 pm, an officer on duty responded to a welfare check, where they found a woman walking north on 20th Avenue with two small children. The temperature at that time was approximately 36 degrees and it was raining. The officer pulled into the parking lot just north of Bulldog Boulevard and made contact with the woman. The woman identified herself, admitted to being intoxicated, and stated she had no where to stay and was on her way to Walmart. The officer suggested the woman have her two young children sit in his patrol vehicle so they could be dry and warm. The woman reportedly began to cry and plead for the officer not to take her kids from her. She told the officer that she had been staying at the Safe House but was kicked out because she was intoxicated. The woman reported she had been told to go to the hospital across the street to sober up and then she would be allowed to come back. The woman stated she did not wish to go to the hospital. Another officer had arrived at the scene, and eventually the woman got into the patrol vehicle with her children.
The officer made a call to the Safe House and spoke with an employee who apparently said that they would not allow the woman to stay there, while intoxicated. The officer then made another call to the Safe House Director who agreed to pay for a hotel room for the woman and her children for the night. After the the officer took the woman and her children to their room, the woman told the officer her children needed something to eat. The officer purchased some food and brought it back to the hotel.
