Parents make 10-year-old skip school to babysit 3 younger siblings, ND cops say
When authorities responded to a welfare check at a North Dakota home, a deputy said he looked through a glass door and saw children playing inside.
Deputies then spoke with a 10-year-old child who was watching her three younger siblings on a Friday morning during school hours on March 27, according to a declaration of probable cause filed on June 4.
The other children under the supervision of the school-age child were 4 years old, 1 year old and 6 months old, deputies said.
A 6-year-old sibling was at school when they told the principal that the 10-year-old was not at school that day because they needed to babysit their youngest siblings, the probable cause statement said. The comment led the school to contact authorities.
Deputies tried to contact both 26-year-old parents, but they didn’t answer, court documents said.
Attorney information for the parents was not listed. McClatchy News is not naming the parents to protect the identity of their children.
Eventually, the 10-year-old was able to reach the father through Facebook Messenger, according to deputies.
The father told the officer through video call that he thought it was OK for a 10-year-old to be at the Antler home alone and in charge of their younger siblings while he “was at work for a few hours,” the probable cause said.
Deputies observed garbage, insects and food waste littered throughout the home and said there were feces smeared on the walls. The mother said she was too busy to take care of the residence due to nursing school, according to the probable cause.
Both parents are charged with one count of child neglect. They are scheduled to appear in court on July 1.
Antler is a small town on the U.S.-Canadian border, about a 320-mile drive northwest from Fargo.
This story was originally published June 12, 2025 at 9:31 AM with the headline "Parents make 10-year-old skip school to babysit 3 younger siblings, ND cops say."
