Related links
JEFFERSON COUNTY, MO (KTVI - FOX2now.com) -
A three year old girl found walking naked down a Jefferson County highway has deputies asking plenty of questions. The little girl, who is mildly autistic, managed to get out of her family's home new Hillsboro while her mother was sleeping
Cheyenne Biship's mother, Danielle, says she's mortified by what happened.
Choking back tears, she says, "It was pretty horrible to think my baby could have gotten hurt."
It began Thursday morning. Danielle Biship, a full time college student, says she had been awake almost all night working on a paper. When Cheyenne woke up early, ready for the day, Danielle set up a safety gate outside the toddler's room and left her to watch cartoons. The mother then returned to her room and fell back asleep. Meanwhile, Cheyenne, who her parents describe as mildly autistic and very good at figuring things out, had discovered a space heater in her room that she used to scale the gate.
"Flipped it over and stood on it and climbed over her three foot baby gate and walked out the door," her mother says. "Which the door was dead bolted. I didn't realize that she could reach it and had figured it out."
Cheyenne had removed her diaper, something her parents say she does often. This left her naked as she went out onto Highway C where the family lives. She didn't get far before deputies say a motorist came up on the little girl.
"Motorist had driven down that stretch of roadway, came around the curve, seen the child and stopped," Jefferson County Sheriff's Department Captain Ralph Brown says. " Not seeing an adult in the area (they)phoned us."
Deputies arrived and began searching the area for the child's home. It took two trips to the Biship's door to rouse Danielle Biship from sleep. Her reaction when they told her what happened:
"Horror and guilt that I just didn't hear her get out of the house or even get over the gate. She was right across from me. You would think you'd hear her clamoring over the gate but I didn't."
Deputies say Danielle told them the girl had gotten over the gate before, something they find concerning as they determine whether or not to press charges.
"By her own admission she admitted she did this before and the child had placed this and climbed over the top. So one kind of wonders if this child was able to do this before there's a good chance she can do it again and obviously the child did."
But the Biships say they had made changes to the gate to keep Cheyenne from getting past it. Those changes didn't work.
A hearing is scheduled for next Monday with Family Services to determine if or when the Biships will get Cheyenne and her older sister back. Both have been removed from the home until the investigation is over.
View Larger Map
Cheyenne Biship's mother, Danielle, says she's mortified by what happened.
Choking back tears, she says, "It was pretty horrible to think my baby could have gotten hurt."
It began Thursday morning. Danielle Biship, a full time college student, says she had been awake almost all night working on a paper. When Cheyenne woke up early, ready for the day, Danielle set up a safety gate outside the toddler's room and left her to watch cartoons. The mother then returned to her room and fell back asleep. Meanwhile, Cheyenne, who her parents describe as mildly autistic and very good at figuring things out, had discovered a space heater in her room that she used to scale the gate.
"Flipped it over and stood on it and climbed over her three foot baby gate and walked out the door," her mother says. "Which the door was dead bolted. I didn't realize that she could reach it and had figured it out."
Cheyenne had removed her diaper, something her parents say she does often. This left her naked as she went out onto Highway C where the family lives. She didn't get far before deputies say a motorist came up on the little girl.
"Motorist had driven down that stretch of roadway, came around the curve, seen the child and stopped," Jefferson County Sheriff's Department Captain Ralph Brown says. " Not seeing an adult in the area (they)phoned us."
Deputies arrived and began searching the area for the child's home. It took two trips to the Biship's door to rouse Danielle Biship from sleep. Her reaction when they told her what happened:
"Horror and guilt that I just didn't hear her get out of the house or even get over the gate. She was right across from me. You would think you'd hear her clamoring over the gate but I didn't."
Deputies say Danielle told them the girl had gotten over the gate before, something they find concerning as they determine whether or not to press charges.
"By her own admission she admitted she did this before and the child had placed this and climbed over the top. So one kind of wonders if this child was able to do this before there's a good chance she can do it again and obviously the child did."
But the Biships say they had made changes to the gate to keep Cheyenne from getting past it. Those changes didn't work.
A hearing is scheduled for next Monday with Family Services to determine if or when the Biships will get Cheyenne and her older sister back. Both have been removed from the home until the investigation is over.
View Larger Map
