A 52-year-old Minnesota grandmother, Anastasia Vaughn, avoided jail time after pleading guilty to endangering a child. Vaughn, back in October 2024, left her infant grandson in a ditch.
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According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by PEOPLE, the incident took place on October 29. 2024. A motorist, at the time, witnessed a woman, Vaughn, leaving an infant in a ditch and then running away from the scene. The infant was barefoot and was “wearing only a sweatshirt and sweatpants.”
The reporting motorist managed to retrieve the infant, Vaughn’s grandson, from the ditch. The affidavit detailed that the weather conditions at the time were “windy and rainy,” and that “the temperature was in the 50-degree range.”
An Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office deputy shortly arrived at the scene. After briefly looking for Vaughn, the deputy found the woman “stumbling” while barefoot in a wooded area. The deputy noted, as per the affidavit, that Vaugh had “bloodshot watery eyes and slurred speech.” Moreover, the deputy smelled alcohol “coming from her.”
As per the outlet, multiple Breathalyzer test attempts were performed at the scene, to no avail. Eventually, after taking Vaughn into custody at the Otter Tail County Detention Facility, a test revealed that her blood alcohol concentration was .229, which is three times the legal limit.
Pleading Guilty
Two days after the incident, prosecutors filed charges against Anastasia Vaughn. Before the case went to trial, Vaughn pleaded guilty to a charge of endangering a child.
A plea petition obtained by PEOPLE revealed that Vaughm admitted to consuming alcohol mixed with her prescribed medication. Then, Vaughn said she “put [her grandson] down on the ground near the ditch and left him.”
Her plea deal involved her avoiding serving time in jail, by commuting her 364-day sentence by 319 days. Anastasia Vaughn was sentenced to 45 days, but, according to Valley News Live, will serve that time by completing 492 hours of community service work. Additionally, she was placed on supervised probation for two years. Finally, she was fined $500.
Additionally, the judge prohibited Vaughn from consuming alcohol, having individuals under 18, and she must submit herself to regular testing. Should she violate her release conditions, she could face jail time.