She has appeared on the Dr. Phil Show as an expert in her field. But now, Karen Corcoran Walsh has been arrested for doing what she was trained not to do – child abuse and neglect.
Karen Corcoran Walsh is alleged to have left her 11-year-old step daughter home alone after storming out of her Florida home following an argument with her husband.
When contacted on the phone she is alleged to have refused to return to the house to take care of the child telling a security guard to call the girl’s father.
Walsh, who runs the Inspiration for Youth and Families Center which helps teens addicted to drugs, was arrested on child abuse charges.
The 51-year-old later told local media she was the victim of wrongful arrest and her lawyer said he hoped the charge would be dropped.
According to a police report the incident began after Walsh and her husband Christopher had an argument at their home.
During the row Walsh broke her husband’s cell phone and told him to leave the house. After he left, Walsh also walked out leaving her step daughter alone in the gated community.
The arrest report said the girl was ‘scared, when she walked out of the bedroom to find herself home alone.
‘She had no cell phone, no house phone, no house key or no note left saying where her mother had left to. (The girl) explained she left the home unlocked and proceeded to walk down the road to the guard gate barefoot. The road was very dark and unsafe for a child to walk at night alone.’
The guard called Boca Raton Police who located Karen Walsh and placed her under arrest – charging her with ‘Neglect of a Child.’
Walsh later posted $3,000 bond
