Hixson woman charged with child abuse following a shocking discovery inside Walmart

HIXSON, Tennessee (WDEF) — A shocking discovery inside a women’s restroom at the Hixson Walmart has led to the arrest of a woman who is now facing one count of child abuse and neglect.

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by News 12, the incident happened on May 24 of this year , but the arrest was not made until this past Monday as a result of a warrant.

On June 22 of this year, a Chattanooga detective responded to a drug exposed infant complaint from officials at the Child Advocacy Center. CAC first got involved when a uniformed police officer contacted them after making a shocking discovery.

According to the affidavit, the officer was called to the Walmart on Highway 153 to assist store managers with two females held up inside the women’s restroom.

When the officer entered the restroom with store managers, he located Angela Bivens, 34, of Hixson, her 11 month old son and another female in the handicap stall. The other female has not been identified by police and it’s unclear if that person is a minor.

The officer noted in his report that he spotted blood spray on the lid of the toilet and inside the toilet bowl. He also found three hypodermic needles in a nearby trash can. One of the needles contained blood. The officers also noted in his report that Bivens had fresh visible track marks on her arm which led the officer to believe shooting illegal narcotics  inside the stall.

Due to Bevins having her 11 week old son with her in the stall, the Department of Children’s Services was called to the scene.

The 11 week old child was taken to Children’s Hospital at Erlanger for medical evaluation. Medical staff at the hospital were instructed to test the child for drug exposure.

Several days later, CAC received a call from physician’s assistant at Erlanger who confirmed the child tested positive for high levels of Methamphetamine and Amphetamine.

After the result came back, a warrant was issued for Bivens’ arrest.

Her bond was set at $75,000 and her first appearance in court is scheduled for October 25.

Bivens is no stranger to law enforcement.

According to Hamilton County court records, Bivens has a criminal rap sheet nearly three pages long. She has multiple criminal convictions for theft, reckless endangerment, illegal drug possession and prostitution. Criminal records also show that Bivens has been in and out of jail since 2000.