Texas mother allegedly put her son in the trunk of the car to avoid being exposed to covid-19

(CNN) – A Texas mother was charged with endangering a minor after she allegedly placed her 13-year-old son, who had Covid-19, in the trunk of her car to avoid expose yourself to the virus, according to a court order from the Harris County Prosecutor’s Office.

Sarah Beam, 41, was charged after authorities arrived at a COVID-19 testing center in the Houston area on January 3, following a report that a health services official had found the child. In the trunk of Beam’s car.

According to the court order, the director of health services stated that she was collecting information from vehicles in a queue for the covid test when “she found a driver, later identified as Sarah Beam, with her son in the trunk of her car.” .

The Health Director told police that “the defendant confirmed that her 13-year-old son, KH, was in the trunk of the car because the boy had tested positive for covid.”

According to the court order, the mother told the Health Director that she wanted to avoid exposure to the virus while taking her son to the testing center for “additional tests.”

When the health official asked Beam to see the child, the mother opened the trunk where the “child was lying in the trunk.”

The mother was then told that the child would not be tested until she had taken him out of the trunk and into the back seat of the car. The health official called the police and returned to the car, where she found the boy in the back seat.

Authorities were called to the COVID-19 testing center on January 3.

During the investigation, police checked surveillance cameras at an adjacent high school and found that the boy “got out of the trunk and into the back seat of the vehicle from the passenger side,” according to the court order.

The mother was released from jail Sunday on $ 1,500 bond, according to a document from the Harris County Prosecutor’s Office and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office website.

Beam is a teacher at Cypress Falls High School, in the Cy-Fair Independent School District, according to KHOU, a television station affiliated with CNN.

She was put on administrative discharge, KHOU reported.

CNN contacted Beam, but has not received a response. CNN has not been able to confirm if she has an attorney. CNN also contacted the Cy-Fair Independent School District for a statement.