HENDERSON COUNTY–Henderson County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputies responded along with Emergency Medical Services to a report that a child had been abandoned in the driveway of a home on State Highway 19 just outside Athens Oct. 29, according to a report on the HCSO social media.
Deputies and Emergency Medical Services went to the residence and spoke with the residents. The eight-month-old female was checked out by emergency medical staff who stayed with the child while deputies conducted the investigation until Henderson County Crimes Against Children Investigator Dustin Smith and HCSO Crime Scene Investigator Jonathon Barrios responded to assist. Child Protective Services (CPS) also responded according to the post.
The sheriff’s office posted the child’s photo on social media asking for help identifying who she was, or who her family was. HCSO received a call from Aliza Perez who advised dispatch she needed to turn herself in for leaving the child. Investigators conducted interviews and learned that Perez was the mother of the child and she had left the child on the side of the roadway in a stroller. CPS also conducted interviews and placed the child. 
HCSO was assisted by the Henderson County District Attorney’s Office, CPS, the Texas Rangers, and UT Emergency Medical Services.
Investigator Smith presented a probable cause affidavit to Henderson County 392nd Judicial District Judge Scott McKee who issued an arrest warrant for Perez for endangering or abandoning a child. Investigator Smith arrested Perez and she was in the Henderson County Jail as of press time. Bond was set at $100,000.