A regional president of a healthcare company and her husband are accused of leaving their 6-month-old baby alone in a tent on the beach during her nap, while they went for a long walk along the shore on Friday. Sara Sommers Wilks and her husband, Brian Wilks, were arrested after police found an unattended baby at Florida's Miramar Beach around noon on Friday.
The couple — Sommers Wilks, 37, and Wilks, 40 — told officers they had "lost track of time" while walking along the beach with their three older children, according to the Walton County Sheriff's Office. The pair went out for a walk and were gone for nearly an hour.
Irresponsible Parents
"It's right there at that hour time frame, 50 minutes to an hour, way longer than what would be reasonable," Major Dustin Cosson with the Walton County Sheriff's Office told ABC 13. A good Samaritan found the baby and cared for her inside the nearby Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort and Spa until police arrived.
Meanwhile, the parents were completely unaware of the situation and couldn't be contacted because they had left their cellphones behind with the baby, according to the sheriff's office.
"We're thankful for the quick-thinking beachgoer who raised the alarm and for those who stepped in to care for the child with the same kindness and concern they would show their own," Sheriff Michael Adkinson said.
Authorities said the baby's vital signs were normal, and she didn't appear to be in any distress.
She and her three older siblings were placed in the care of the Florida Department of Children and Families until other relatives could come for them, according to the sheriff's office.
Punished for Their Actions
The parents were later arrested and charged with child neglect without great bodily harm — a third-degree felony under Florida law. Cosson was shocked by the parents' lack of concern, pointing out that infants can easily get into dangerous situations — even when they're just taking a nap.
"That's all fine and dandy, but you don't just leave a baby at a house and then leave and go off to the store. The baby could roll over and suffocate itself, or the wind could blow a towel over its face. There's no telling what could have happened," he told ABC 13.
Police said the parents were both released on a $1,000 bond on Saturday.
Sommers Wilks has had a long and successful career in business and currently serves as the regional president for Southeast Texas at US Heart and Vascular, a company that provides support services to independent cardiovascular practices in Arizona, Alabama, and Texas.
