BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

INEZ — Two Inez women face charges of endangering the welfare of a minor after police found children living in a home with unacceptable living conditions.

According to the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, 24-year-old Desirae Dalton and 36-year-old Alicia Dalton of Inez are accused of having four young children living in an unsafe, unsanitary home.

Chief Deputy Chris Kidd went Thursday afternoon to the residence located along Church Fork in Inez to serve an emergency protective order.

The officer said he immediately noticed trash on the property.

Inside the home, in the front room, he found four young children whose feet, legs and faces were covered with dirt and mud.

An electrical switch and light in the room were flickering and sparking. The deputy found unexposed electrical wiring running to a heater in the hallway. The floors had no covering and the subfloor had exposed nails sticking up. In the bathroom, the deputy found the plumbing was not in working order.

The officer soon learned the four children, aged 1, 5, 6 and 7, lived in the home.

He also learned that Alicia Dalton had two juvenile boys, aged 15 and 16, in the back room when he arrived.

Both women were arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of a minor.