Fundraiser Held For Woman Who Left Her Kids In The Car During A Job Interview

By Andrew Scot Bolsinger

A groundswell of financial support has raised nearly $50,000 over the Internet for a 35-year-old Arizona homeless woman arrested after she left her two young children in the car while she interviewed for a job.

On March 20 a bystander called Scottsdale, Ariz. police to report two boys left alone in a Dodge Durango. The car, with its windows slightly opened, was parked in direct sunlight in an office complex, police said.

Police waited for the children’s mother, Shanesha Taylor, to return to the car. When she did, she was arrested. Taylor told them she couldn’t afford a babysitter, was homeless and unemployed. The boys, ages 2 and six months, were taken by Child Protective Services, according to news reports.

“She was upset. This is a sad situation all around. She said she was homeless. She needed the job,” Scottsdale Police Sgt. Mark Clark told a local CBS television reporter.

In response, a 24-year-old student, Amanda Bishop, started an Internet campaign to raise money for the Taylor’s legal defense.

“There are some of us that feel that Shanesha was in an unfortunate situation that sadly an economy like ours is putting many single mother is in a position to make terrible mistakes like this,” Bishop wrote.

The amount quickly surpassed her $9,000 bond and neared $50,000, which will reportedly go to Taylor’s legal defense.

Despite the ability to post bail, authorities are holding Taylor until Monday.

“It’s amazing to see the online community come together at times like this. The question is, will this recent arrest make it even harder for Shanesha to obtain a job to take care of her kids? Will there be resources available for her when she is set free?” the celebrity urban website necolebitchie.com posted.

“This is one of those situations where it seems as though she can’t win for losing.”

Some reports have said that Taylor is a military vet who became homeless after her husband left her and her kids. Organizers are hoping to continue raising money for her support.

Andrew Scot Bolsinger won more than two dozen press awards during his journalism career. He is a freelance writer, author and operates www.criminalu.co, which is focused on prison reform. He can reached at Andrew.Bolsinger@gmail.com