A 36-year-old mother from Indiana and her 41-year-old husband found themselves in trouble after refusing to pick up their 13-year-old daughter from a hospital. The mother reportedly told a social worker, “I’m not dealing with this,” leaving many shocked by the situation.
The parents, Amanda D. Osmon and Jeffrey Scheda, now face charges of neglect of a dependent. The incident unfolded over the weekend at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville hospital, located about 165 miles southwest of Indianapolis.
The trouble began when the teenage girl went to the hospital on her own Saturday afternoon following a heated argument with her mother. She was admitted for a mental health evaluation. After the evaluation, hospital staff repeatedly tried to contact her mother, but their calls went unanswered.
Eventually, around 7 p.m., a hospital social worker managed to get in touch with the stepfather, Jeffrey Scheda, by phone. However, when the social worker asked him to have Amanda call the hospital, he reportedly hung up.
It wasn’t until about 10 p.m. that the social worker finally spoke to Amanda. According to reports, the conversation was tense and argumentative. Amanda allegedly refused to pick up her daughter, saying, “I’m not dealing with this tonight,” before hanging up. The social worker told authorities that Amanda sounded intoxicated during the call.
By early Sunday morning, with no resolution in sight, officers from the Evansville Police Department went to the parents’ home. They found both Amanda and Jeffrey, who admitted they had been drinking heavily and passed out while their daughter was still at the hospital.
Amanda claimed her daughter had bitten her during their earlier argument and insisted the hospital hadn’t contacted her about the girl’s discharge until nearly 3 a.m. Sunday. However, she couldn’t provide any evidence to back up this claim.
The parents were arrested and taken to the Vanderburgh County Jail, where they were charged with neglect. They were released after posting $1,500 bond each. As part of their release conditions, Amanda and Jeffrey are banned from drinking alcohol and cannot contact the teenager without permission from the Department of Child Services.
Their initial court hearings are scheduled for January 29.
