Parents charged with leaving 6-year-old alone

TOWSON, Md. (AP) — Baltimore County Police have charged the parents of a 6-year-old boy after he was found alone in a Towson motel room.

Police were called to the Welcome Inn on Aug. 7 after a maintenance worker found the child on the kitchen floor in a room. Authorities say the boy was taken to a hospital and found to be suffering from severe malnutrition.

Police say the boy was alone for between two hours and five hours.

Investigators say the boy’s parents had gone out looking for a new place to stay.

Police on Thursday charged 33-year-old Jessica Lynn Maranto and 32-year-old Brandon Joseph Johnson with child abuse, child neglect and other offenses. They are being held without bond.

Officers say the boy remains hospitalized.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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