Centre County couple charged after 5-year-old falls from ski lift he was riding alone
.jpg "A Centre County couple faces child endangerment charges after their 5-year-old fell about 20 feet from a ski lift he was riding alone.")
A Centre County couple was charged Tuesday with felony child endangerment after their 5-year-old fell about 20 feet from a ski lift he was riding alone.
Micah M. Porter, 34, and Maya M. Porter, 37, each of Ferguson Township, are facing the charge after their son fell in March at Blue Knob Ski Resort in Bedford County.
State police at Bedford said in an affidavit of probable cause that it took resort staff about 15 minutes to locate the Porters after the fall, which a trooper attributed to a lack of direct supervision.
Defense lawyer Stephanie Cooper, who represents both of the Porters, declined comment Thursday when contacted by the Centre Daily Times.
Police said the child was flown by medical helicopter to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, but did not note any injuries in the affidavit. The Porters told WTAJ in March that their son was not injured.
A resort employee told troopers that the boy told him he fell while trying to adjust his goggles. Micah Porter told the worker and a ski lift operator that his son was experienced and able to ride the lift by himself, police wrote.
Each told troopers that Maya took her two boys down the mountain while Micah had gone into a bathroom at the top of the slopes, police wrote. She said her 5-year-old went down faster than she did and that she could not find him at the base, police wrote.
She assumed he had already gotten on the ski lift again, but instead received a phone call from Micah Porter saying the child fell into the snow, police wrote. Troopers said both agreed a 5-year-old should not ride a ski lift alone.
They were arraigned Tuesday by Bedford County District Judge Tonya Osman and were each released on unsecured bail. Each has a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 6.