3-year-old found wandering in Stone Mountain after mom teaches him a 'lesson,' police say

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A Stone Mountain mom allegedly tried to teach her toddler a lesson by leaving him on a park bench. Now, she's in jail.

A couple of Good Samaritans said they found the 3-year-old boy running into a busy street at night. It happened around 10:30 p.m. on July 2 at North DeShong Road near South Rockbridge Road in Stone Mountain. The little boy’s mother told police she was punishing her child for acting up.

Will Mosley and his wife Michelle were driving along North DeShong when he did a double-take.

Police say the 3-year-old was found wandering near Deshong Park where his mother and her boyfriend allegedly left him to teach him a lesson.

"I saw something running," Mosley said. "That looks like a kid."

Mosley says the toddler had run into the street, parents nowhere in sight.

"He was running to the car and said, 'Can I get in, please? Can I get in?’ And we let him in," Mosley said. "We asked where his mother was. He didn’t know."

Gwinnett County police said the mother and her boyfriend were nearby at DeShong Park.

"She had left her child on a park bench in the park in order to punish the child for misbehavior," said Sgt. Collin Flynn. "The child got up, ran away as soon as the mother drove off and ended up running into the roadway."

Police told FOX 5 that what the mother did was extremely dangerous.

"The child could’ve run into the roadway and been hit by a car, or if there was someone out there who could’ve taken the child," Flynn said.

Police say the 3-year-old was found wandering near Deshong Park where his mother and her boyfriend allegedly left him to teach him a lesson.

Police arrested Gabrielle Buckley.

"This was punishment taken to an extreme and constituted reckless conduct," Flynn said.

"At three years old, you don’t punish them like that," Mosley said. "Somebody needs to talk to her."

Police issued an arrest warrant for Lawrence Dozier-Joubert. He and Buckley are facing reckless conduct charges and could face more counts.