Newborn baby abandoned in shed after truck crashes near railroad tracks in Livingston
LIVINGSTON, Texas - John McClain lives near Marsh Drive in Livingston, Texas, a usually quiet small-town neighborhood; he was never expecting his weekend to pan out the way it did.
Around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, he heard a loud truck speeding and turning around near his driveway, he learned his neighbor's truck had been stolen, so he reviewed his home security cameras.
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"Looked at the footage and went to all of our vehicles and pulled the door handles before he could get in one down there, so we just thought it was a vehicle theft," McClain explained.
Police came, took a report for the stolen truck, and revealed the suspect had crashed another truck near the railroad tracks not far from John's home.
Around 9:30 that morning, hours after the suspect took off, John learned this was a lot more than a simple auto theft.
"I let the dog out, the dog came right here, and started barking right at the shed, like hey there's something here," John said.
His 1-year-old schnauzer, Archie, had just alerted the family to a 7 to 8-month-old girl abandoned in their shed.
"I heard that infant cry, so I opened the door and there's a little baby laying there just looking up at me," he recalled.
That baby suffered a broken leg and an injured femur believed to be from the initial crash. John went further back on his surveillance cameras and learned the suspect actually went into his shed and stayed for about three hours before he stole the neighbor's truck, meaning the baby had been in that shed for six hours.
"We wrapped her in a towel, took her to the porch. She showed comfort, smiled, and we didn't know she was injured, she just fell asleep," John said.
Police found and arrested the suspect, identified as 43-year-old Clifford Jason Guynes. He's facing numerous charges, including child endangerment.
Officers also say they found meth on him at the time of his arrest. Police say he is the child's father.
The baby is expected to be okay.
A spokesperson with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services confirmed that the baby is in the agency's care and is recovering at the hospital.
"DFPS is investigating alongside law enforcement to make sure she remains safe and that her medical needs are being met," DFPS spokesperson Melissa Lanford said in a statement.