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Maryland Mom Held On $500K After Infant Found On Roadside

PASADENA, Md. (WJZ) -- A Baltimore mother is facing serious charges after police say she abandoned her infant daughter on a Pasadena roadway over the weekend.

Amy Yensi has the latest on the investigation.

Police have now released the shocking 911 calls of when the baby was found. You can hear the baby crying in the background as the operator and caller struggle to understand why anyone would leave her there.

Shock and worry filled the voice of the 911 call from a quiet Pasadena neighborhood.

"It's a baby in our street and no one's around. And the baby is steady crying," the caller said.

Anne Arundel County police charged 26-year-old Sandra McClary with neglect of a minor and reckless endangerment after they say she abandoned her six-week-old daughter, Angelique Patricia Morgan, on Druid Hill Avenue Saturday night.

"When fireworks are still going off, people were doing celebratory gunfire, something we were warning against. July fourth is historically one of the most dangerous days on the roadway," said Lt. TJ Smith, Anne Arundel County police. "This was an intentional act."

Bishop Raymond Showell says he was driving home when he found little Angelique in her carrier just before midnight and alerted the neighbors.

"It looked like it was a child in a carriage and as I got closer, indeed, that's exactly what it was," he said.

Alice Burton is the one who called police.

"No, we are looking around and we don't see anybody and the carriage is right up in the street," she said. "The baby just cried so hard, you know, it's a shame."

The charging documents obtained by WJZ show McClary told police she was having a physical altercation with the child's father, Cordell Lee Hall. That's when she removed the infant from her car seat base and placed her on the ground and then pulled away in her van.

Police say McClary stepped forward the next morning after seeing the baby's picture on social media.

She was set to have her bail review in Annapolis District Court; that has been postponed until Tuesday morning.

The baby, who spent nearly an hour on that road, was taken to Baltimore Washington Medical Center and treated for minor hypothermia. She's now in the care of Child Protective Services, which has gotten numerous requests from people interested in adopting her.

McClary is being held on $500,000 bail. She's also facing burglary charges in a separate incident.

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