The parents of an 8-year-old boy who police say was severely neglected before being struck by a car appeared before a judge Thursday.
Despite the allegations, the boy’s father, Mark Ecott, 35, asked a judge if he could contact his children if he is released from custody. Pro Tem Justice of the Peace Lisa Luzaich denied the request.
Ecott, jailed on $20,000 bail, had been barred from contacting all four of his children, including the boy, should he post bail.
Luzaich said the order would remain in place at least until the couple’s next court hearing in two weeks.
Meanwhile, the children’s mother, Aubrey Lambdin, 30, held a sheet of paper up to her face, shielding it from photographers in the courtroom.
Court records show Lambdin was arrested while she had a pending domestic battery case where Ecott was the alleged victim. She is being held without bail.
Both parents face four felony child neglect charges stemming from a Metropolitan Police Department investigation that was launched after their 8-year-old son was struck by a car while playing with his 11-year-old brother on North Las Vegas Boulevard, near Lamb Boulevard.
The crash happened just after 9:30 p.m. Sunday.
When Metro detectives went to speak with Ecott, police said, they found him outside the family’s home, a half-mile from the crash scene. He was drinking a beer and smoking a cigarette.
Investigators described the home as unlivable, with fire hazards, animal feces, trash and no clean areas for the children to eat.
Lambdin told officers she had moved out about two months earlier but occasionally came over to visit the children, police said.
During the hearing on Thursday, she told Luzaich that she was hiring a private attorney. Luzaich said Ecott would be appointed a public defender.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reviewjournal.com.
