Irene Miller Jailed in Kissimmee After Leaving Four Children Alone

Irene Miller, 50, was booked into the Orange County Jail on four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm. Police arrested her on Friday morning as she exited a flight in Florida. She had been in Las Vegas for work since Oct. 18.

The arrest followed a 911 call placed by one of Miller’s children on Oct. 21. The caller reported that a dumbbell had fallen on the head of her 9-year-old brother. Deputies arrived at the family’s Kissimmee home shortly after 8:30 p.m. that evening. They found four children, ages 9, 11, 12, and 14, in the house with no adults present.

Fire rescue crews transported the injured boy to Celebration Hospital. He was treated and discharged. A deputy spoke with Miller by phone while she was in Las Vegas. She told the officer she planned to return to Florida on Oct. 23. She explained that a babysitter from Tampa visited in the mornings to help with school and checked on the children later in the day. The sitter did not stay overnight, according to the sheriff’s office.

The children’s father took all four kids to his home while detectives coordinated the arrest. Body camera footage shows deputies escorting Miller through the airport terminal and placing her in handcuffs. Sheriff Chris Blackmon of the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office addressed the case in a statement.

"The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office will not tolerate child neglect," Blackmon said. "These cases will be investigated, and charges will be brought against the parents who are not properly supervising or caring for their children."