Apr 13, 2016 3 min read

A Chartiers Township woman was charged by township police for the third time in the last two years with child endangerment after she was reportedly found Sunday night passed out in her Meadow Lands home with her two sons, including one with special needs, in the residence.

Starrla R. Murphy, 45, of 90 Barnickle St., faces a felony charge of endangering the welfare of children.

Police were called about 8:35 p.m. for a domestic dispute. When Officer Edgar Ellis arrived, Murphy’s 15-year-old son told him that he and his brother came home that afternoon and found their mother intoxicated and still drinking. He told police he called his grandmother after his mother passed out because his mother is on probation and not supposed to be drinking.

Ellis found Murphy passed out on the couch. There were about 18 empty beer cans spread throughout the living room and a tall trash can in the bathroom overflowing with empty beer cans.

Ellis yelled several times, trying to wake her. Her son yelled and shook her until she woke up.

Police said Murphy was incoherent and unable to stand. He also determined she was not able to care for her two sons, ages 13 and 15.

Police called Washington County Adult Probation and Children and Youth Services. Murphy was placed in Washington County jail on a detainer. The boys were released to their father.

Murphy’s first arrest on a charge of endangering the welfare of children stemmed from a September 2014 incident at her home.

She reportedly brought a man her children did not know with her when she returned home from a bar. Police found her in the bedroom, visibly intoxicated and unable to stand up or speak. She entered an open plea to endangering the welfare of children and was admitted to the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program.

Last April, she was charged with three counts of reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of children for allegedly leaving the two boys and her 4-year-old daughter. Murphy left the house after learning her older son called police after he and his younger brother got into a confrontation. She pleaded guilty to one count of child endangerment and was placed on probation for 18 months.

Earlier this year, Murphy and James Lee Pitock, 52, of Washington, were charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after both allegedly ended up behind the wheel of the same van during a traffic stop by South Strabane Township police. Officers had Pitock out of the van against the bumper of the police cruiser. The van started moving back toward Pitock and police found Murphy behind the wheel. Both waived their cases to court.

The charges were filed Wednesday at the office of District Judge David Mark and a preliminary hearing will be scheduled.