Inset: Amy Shellhammer. Background: The Arizona complex where Amy Shellhammer allegedly ditched her 2-year-old son in an "extremely hot" garage (AZ Family/YouTube).
An Arizona mother left her 2-year-old son trapped in an "extremely hot" garage with no air conditioning, according to police. A neighbor allegedly found the boy — who had fentanyl, meth and THC in his system — asleep and was unable to wake him up.
"It took her 20 to 30 minutes to wake up the child after removing him from the garage," an arrest affidavit says about Amy Shellhammer's son, who tested positive for the drugs three days later.
Shellhammer, 31, was arrested and charged Monday with child abuse and failing to comply with a court order for allegedly abandoning her son, whom she was not supposed to be caring for, at their home in Mesa on Wednesday, July 29.
The high temperature was 109 degrees that day.
"IM LEAVING," Shellhammer texted her neighbor, according to the affidavit, which was obtained by Law&Crime on Wednesday.
"[The boy] IS IN THE GARAGE," Shellhammer allegedly said. "IM SICKER THAN F— … HES ASLEEP."
The neighbor, who is a foster mother to other children, reported that she was "very worried for the child because the garage was un-air conditioned and extremely hot," per the affidavit. Nobody else was at Shellhammer's home, according to police.
"The neighbor provided photographs of the victim in the garage and screenshots of the above text messages," the affidavit says.
The Arizona Department of Child Safety took custody of Shellhammer's son on Aug. 1 and brought him to doctors for a medical evaluation. The drug results prompted further investigation by DCS, which interviewed Shellhammer "about how the drugs could be in the child's body," according to the affidavit.
"The defendant admitted that she smokes fentanyl, meth, and marijuana 10+ [times] per day inside her residence with her 2-year-old victim son present and said her son is 'obviously' exposed when she smokes," the affidavit states. "Medical records were collected and attached to the case confirming the presence of all three substances in the victim's system."
Police say Shellhammer ignored an "active protection order" in place that requires her to stay away from her son. The order was signed on Aug. 12, 2025, in Colorado and was confirmed to still be active, per cops.
"The defendant put the victim in a circumstance likely to produce death or serious physical injury," the affidavit concludes.
According to AZ Family, Shellhammer was arrested on Aug. 1, but prosecutors initially chose not to pursue the child abuse charge against her. Further investigation led to additional evidence and a new child abuse charge being handed down this week, the outlet reports.
Shellhammer was being held on a $35,000 bond.
Comments