Last Edited: Friday, 07 Nov 2008, 12:57 PM CST
Created: Friday, 07 Nov 2008, 12:57 PM CST

Shanell Monique Mosley

A woman, originally accused of child abandonment for leaving her kids to take a trip to Africa, is sentenced to 5 years probation.

A jury earlier found 34-year-old Shanell Mosley guilty of child endangerment.

The charges are the result of a Harris County deputy's welfare check in January 2008, when he found six children under the age of 9 home alone. Mosley had left for Nigeria two days before that, planning to marry a man she met on the internet. She believed her sister was coming in from Louisiana to take care of the children, but her sister never arrived.

Through her attorney, Mosley acknowledged Friday that she should have not left the children when she did, but said she in no way was abandoning them.

The children have been in foster care for the past ten months while Mosley was in jail awaiting trial.

While under probation, Mosley will work to regain custody of her children by completing a program by the Texas' Child Protective Services agency. She must also get a job.

Mosely said today she believes it may take 8 or 9 months before she gets her children back.

http://www.myfoxhouston.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=7815575&version=1&locale=
EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1

Emphasis added by H4K Editor