A Florida mother was arrested at the airport after deputies say she left her four children home alone for days while she was in Las Vegas. Irene Miller, 50, faces four counts of child neglect, according to Law&Crime. The case came to light after her nine-year-old son was hurt when a dumbbell fell on his head, prompting one of his siblings to call 911.
Osceola County deputies responded to the Kissimmee home on Parkway Boulevard shortly after 8:30 p.m. on the night of the call. Inside, they found four children, ages 14, 12, 11 and nine, with no adult present, according to the sheriff’s office. The nine-year-old was taken to Celebration Hospital for treatment and was later released.
A deputy reached Miller by phone, and she reportedly said she was working in Las Vegas and planned to return in two days. Investigators later learned she had left Florida three days before the 911 call. Miller allegedly told deputies that a babysitter from Tampa came by in the mornings to get the children ready for school and checked on them after school, but did not stay overnight.
Deputies say they waited for the Kissimmee mom to step off her flight home
The children’s father was contacted and agreed to take all four kids to his home. Detectives then made plans to meet Miller when she flew back to Florida. Body camera footage shows deputies approaching her as she stepped off the plane, and she was arrested on four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm.
Miller was booked into the Orange County Jail following the arrest at the airport. She has not been convicted of any crime, and her account of the babysitting arrangement has not been tested in court. The charges do not allege great bodily harm. However, the nine-year-old’s injury is what first brought deputies to the home and led them to the other children.
It was the nine-year-old’s sister who placed the 911 call that brought deputies to the house, according to the sheriff’s office. In announcing the arrest, the agency said cases like this one will be investigated and that parents who fail to properly supervise or care for their children will face charges.
Florida does not set a minimum age at which children can legally be left home alone, as state law instead focuses on whether a caregiver provides the supervision a child needs. Neglect cases often turn on the children’s ages and how long they went without an adult. Child neglect without great bodily harm is a third-degree felony in the state, punishable by up to five years in prison.
The babysitting arrangement Miller described could become a central issue in the case, as it suggests the children were checked on during the day. However, deputies say no adult stayed in the home overnight during the days she was away. Investigators have not said whether the babysitter has been interviewed or could face scrutiny.
The case echoes another recent Florida arrest in which a mom allegedly left four kids for a cruise and police later found them hiding in a bathroom. In Osceola County, deputies say a single 911 call about an injured child is what revealed how long Miller had been gone.
Miller is expected to face the neglect charges in Osceola County court, where the babysitting arrangement she described to deputies could play a role in her defense.
Published: Oct 28, 2026 06:45 am