- Prosecutors said a woman in Houston pulled up to a COVID-19 testing site with her son in her trunk.
- She wanted to isolate from her son, who had already tested positive, a criminal complaint said.
- The woman was charged with felony child endangerment on Wednesday.
A teacher in Houston, Texas, was charged with a felony after her 13-year-old son was discovered in the trunk of her car at a drive-thru COVID-19 testing site on January 3, according to prosecutors.
Harris County court records showed Sarah Beam, 41, was charged on Wednesday with endangering a child.
Police were called to the testing site for the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District after Bevin Gordon, director of health services for the district, discovered the child was in the trunk, according to the criminal complaint.
According to Gordon, Beam told her she put the boy in the trunk because he had tested positive for COVID-19 previously and she wanted to isolate from him on the way to the testing site, where she planned on having him tested again.
Gordon told police that when she requested to see the child, Beam unlatched the trunk and the boy was inside lying down, the complaint said. Gordon then told Beam she would not administer COVID-19 testing until the boy was moved to the back seat of the car. Gordon then called the police.
Court records did not list an attorney for Beam.
Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District confirmed to KTRK that Beam has worked for the district since 2011 and has been placed on administrative leave.