A 61-year-old Nashville man is facing a child-neglect charge after his 5-year-old, described as nonverbal, was found walking alone in the Napier neighborhood on Friday evening. The child was taken to Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt for an evaluation, and authorities later identified and arrested the child's father.
According to an arrest affidavit, officers were called to a business on Lewis Street after a woman reported that the child had run to her and she started searching for the child's parents. The affidavit lists the father as 61-year-old Ike Wright, who officers found at a residence on Lafayette Street. Wright told investigators he had "consumed two 24 oz. beers around 4 p.m. and fell asleep while watching the child," the document states. Officers reported smelling alcohol and took Wright into custody on a child-neglect charge, as reported by WSMV.
What the charge means
Under Tennessee law, it is a crime to knowingly abuse or neglect a child in a way that harms the child's health or welfare. Tenn. Code §39-15-401 generally classifies neglect or abuse of a child under 18 as a Class A misdemeanor, with harsher penalties, including potential felony charges, when very young children are involved or when serious injuries occur. The statute also gives juvenile and criminal courts concurrent authority to hear these cases. The full statutory language is available at Justia.
Police activity in the Napier area
The Napier housing area around Lewis and Lafayette streets has seen regular Metro Nashville Police Department activity in recent years tied to drug, weapons, and other violent incidents, according to MNPD releases and local coverage. In this case, MNPD did not immediately issue a separate public statement beyond what is contained in the arrest affidavit, although earlier enforcement efforts in the neighborhood are documented in prior department news releases. For an example of a recent MNPD account involving earlier incidents in the Napier area, see the newsroom post from the Metro Nashville Police Department.
What's next
Wright was booked on a child-neglect charge and remains in custody. Court filings related to the case were not immediately available for public review. The case will move through Davidson County's court system and could also prompt a separate Department of Children's Services review of the child's welfare. Details from the arrest affidavit referenced above come from local reporting by WSMV.
