An Owasso mother is held in the Tulsa County Jail after she was arrested for allegedly attempting to force her daughters to blow in an ignition interlockdevice so that she could drive after drinking.
Reports say Owasso police responded to a call about a mother and her daughter fighting in the parking lot of a local Buffalo Wild Wings near midnight Sundaynight, May 29.
When police arrived, they found Kayla Kathleen Martin-Weliwita, 36, and her two daughters, aged 13 and 8.
Responding police say they noticed an odor of alcohol coming from the mother, who told them that she was arguing with her daughter because the girl triedto run away. The girl and her sister, however, had a much different tale.
Both girls told police that their mother had been trying to force them to blow into her vehicle's ignition interlock device, which is designed to disablea vehicle if it detects alcohol on the breath of the would-be driver.
Not only that, but the restaurant's manager told police that the woman had also tried to get several servers at the restaurant to blow into the ignitioninterlock device in order to start the car so she could drive.
Police arrested Martin-Weliwita at 12:15 a.m. on May 30, and booked into the Tulsa County Jail on complaints of public intoxication, child abuse, and childneglect. She remains jailed in lieu of $100,100 bond.
Since her arrest, Martin-Weliwita has been formally charged with one count of public intoxication and one count of child neglect.
Under Oklahoma law, in 37 O.S. � 8, public intoxication is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $10 to $100 and five to 30 days in jail.
Child neglect, on the other hand, is a much more serious offense. Under 21 O.S. � 843.5 (C), child neglect is a felony punishable by a maximum of lifein prison and a fine of $500 to $5,000.
Read more about Oklahoma child abuse and neglect laws on our website, or call(405) 608-4990 to speak with an attorney about your case.
