Hannibal, Mo., mom accused of using child to block Taser

HANNIBAL, Mo. (AP) -- Police say a northeast Missouri mother used her 1-year-old child to shield a man from a Taser during a confrontation with officers.

Twenty-year-old Maliea Martin, of Hannibal, has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child and interfering with an arrest. She was arrested Tuesday night and placed at the Marion County jail on a 24-hour hold.

The child, whose gender police did not release, was placed with another family member.

Officers were at an apartment checking on an assault claim made by Martin when a man confronted them, making threats. One of the officers displayed a Taser as the man approached.

Police say Martin offered her child to the man, placing the toddler in the Taser's path. The man, 22-year-old Joshua McAtee, faces two counts of resisting arrest.

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