Centre County woman accused of withholding medical equipment from diabetic teen
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- Spring Township police charged Elizabeth Timblin with felony child endangerment.
- Timblin allegedly withheld a glucose monitor from a diabetic teen.
- Police cited texts and a doctor's report labeling the case a 'near fatality.'
A Centre County woman was charged Tuesday with felony child endangerment after Spring Township police alleged she intentionally withheld a key medical device from a diabetic teenager who was at one point in critical condition.
Elizabeth N. Timblin, 40, of Spring Township, was accused of withholding a continuous glucose monitoring device from a Type 1 diabetic for nearly three weeks in May.
She did not offer an immediate comment when reached by the Centre Daily Times and said she would contact her defense lawyer.
Township police said in an affidavit of probable cause they were contacted in late May when the 17-year-old was at Geisinger Medical Center in critical condition. They were admitted due to diabetic ketoacidosis, a serious and potentially life-threatening complication.
The township police detective said Timblin was reported to have required the teen to “meet her demands” before providing the sensors. Screenshots of text messages Timblin sent corroborated the report, police wrote.
During an interview, police said Timblin told an officer she had the sensors at her apartment but that they were not “required” for treatment and were only a “convenience.” Police alleged she did not have a “good reason” to posses the sensors and not provide them to the child.
The incident, police wrote, was listed by a Mount Nittany Medical Center doctor as a “near fatality.”
Timblin was also charged with a felony count of criminal use of a communication facility and a misdemeanor count of recklessly endangering another person.
She was arraigned Tuesday by District Judge Greg Koehle, who released her on $10,000 unsecured bail. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 25.