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Grandmother Charged After Leaving Baby Home Alone

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. (1010 WINS) -- A grandmother who runs a licensed daycare center out her home is facing a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child after she left a one-year-old boy alone for several hours Tuesday afternoon.

Linda Bowen, 68, said it was an honest mistake. She left her home to run errands and seemingly forgot that the young boy was there – asleep in a pen.

"Maybe sometimes I try too hard," she said. "I try to do too much."

Mistake or not, it's still a crime.

According to police, the boy's father arrived at Bowen's home to pick up his son at about 5:30, only to discover the house was locked – and the woman who was supposed to be watching him wasn't there. That's when he called police.

"He usually leaves first," Bowen said. "But he left last that day. In my mind, he was gone."

It was a period of about two hours during which the boy – who was unharmed during the incident – was left alone. Bowen, who has been taking care of children for 34 years, returned to her home at about 7:30.

"Believe me, I would never jeopardize my job," she said. "I would not do nothing to nobody's children. I am very sorry that this happened."

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