Mom Accused Of Leaving Three Children For Week Kids, 6, 8 And 11, Left In Dirty House; Older Sister Kept Eye Out

A 35-year-old Coeur d’Alene woman accused of leaving her three young children for a week is now facing three criminal charges.

The Coeur d’Alene prosecutor’s office charged Victoria Dixon-Knowlton with three counts of injury to a child, a misdemeanor crime. She had her first court hearing Wednesday.

Coeur d’Alene Police officers found Knowlton’s three children at home without adult supervision Feb. 3 after their school counselor called police, according to a police report.

Knowlton allegedly left the children - ages 6, 8 and 11 - on Jan. 28, the report said.

Officers found the children in an unkempt house on 15th Street. Dirty dishes filled the sink and covered the stove, according to their report. Officers found little more than milk, cheese and hotdogs in the refrigerator.

The 11-year-old boy told police they had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner and said his mother had left them at home alone before, according to the police report.

David Hunt, school counselor for Borah Elementary School, reported the incident to police after the children’s older sister approached him about the problem.

The 18-year-old girl does not live at the home and works until 8 p.m., but had tried to take care of the children on some of the nights, according to court records.

Police in Boise arrested Knowlton on a warrant, said Coeur d’Alene Police Capt. Carl Bergh.

The three children have been placed in protective custody, said Carol May, a social worker for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

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