Brandon Blount
A prosecutor said a case in which five children were found in a U-Haul trailer was not human trafficking as was first suspected. Andrew Coyle said it turned out to be a Navy veteran who had fallen on hard times and made a poor decision with his multiple kids.
Brandon Blount, 39, pleaded guilty on Thursday to two counts of reckless endangerment. He received consecutive two-year sentences, but both are suspended on his good behavior and probation supervision.
The charges can go off his record if he gets in no further trouble at the end of the probation.
Multiple child neglect and child endangerment charges were dismissed.
Blount, appearing before Criminal Court Judge Boyd Patterson, said, "I apologize for all the trouble I've caused everyone."
A host of law enforcement officers went to the scene when the U-Haul was stopped at the East Brainerd exit of I-75 on March 25. Prosecutor Coyle said even the TBI and the FBI got involved.
Five of Blount's children - ages 4, 5, 6, 10 and 12 - were unrestrained in the back of the U-Haul with no ventilation or way to communicate with their father. The temperature was found to be 88 degrees inside the trailer. There were dirty blankets and pillows strewn around. Two girls were in the cab with Blount.
The children were taken to the hospital, checked out, and released.
The children are Blount's and his ex-wife, Angela.
It was found that Blount had driven from Las Vegas, Nev., to East Ridge, but the children had been in the U-Haul only from the previous day.
The children were placed in foster care, where they remain with some separated from others.
Blount, who at one time was stationed at the Naval Reserve on Amnicola Highway, is not to have contact with them until after he completes a parenting class.
Blount has been in jail since his arrest.
The case was expedited by being handled as an information - bypassing the Grand Jury process.