Second arrest for leaving child in vehicle

A Cody woman was arrested Aug. 2 in Thermopolis and charged with child endangerment, interfering with an officer and unattended vehicle still running.

On the date of the incident, a Thermopolis Police officer was notified a vehicle was left unattended at a bar, with a baby inside. Upon arrival, the officer observed the vehicle running, as well as a small toddler in the back, asleep. The windows were cracked about two inches.

A second officer arrived and observed the air conditioning in the vehicle was not running. An officer put her hand inside the window and observed the air to be warm, but not hot.

Desirae M. Gams was contacted at the bar, initially, denying that the vehicle had been under her control, but later admitting to it. She would later change her story about how long she had been at the bar and how many drinks she had. Though stating she’d only had one kombucha at the bar, an officer observed signs of impairment and a preliminary breath test revealed a blood-alcohol concentration of .16.

Though Gams estimated she had been at the bar 15-20 minutes, staff said she had been there an hour. While Gams was being handcuffed, she was told the Department of Family Services would be taking the child, at which point she began to cry and pull away from the officers.

Gams has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her, and is scheduled to appear on Sept. 13, but this is not the only time she’s been accused of leaving a child in an unattended vehicle. In April she was accused of trespassing and resisting arrest while a child in her care was in her nearby vehicle. She pled guilty to interference with a peace officer in that incident.