QUEENS — A woman accused of taking her 3-year-old daughter despite not having parental custody has been ordered held in jail, court documents show.
Candice Crump, 41, was charged with custodial interference Friday, two days after she took her daughter Latifah from Jamaica Hospital following a fight that led to the arrest of the girl's father, according to police.
She was denied bail during her arraignment Saturday.
Crump had not been allowed visitation rights with the girl because she had refused to undergo a mental health evaluation ordered by a court in 2013, the documents show.
Police arrested the woman Friday after finding her with her daughter and 4-month-old son Jaden at a Bronx shelter. Sources said she does have custody of the boy, despite previous reports that she did not.
Both children were taken to an area hospital for an evaluation, police said Friday.
Crump is currently being held on Rikers Island and is due back in court on Jan. 3.
According to the complaint, the mother also had a warrant issued against her by Queens Family Court on Oct. 19 for child neglect regarding Jaden.
Information about Crump’s attorney was not immediately available.
On Dec. 14, Crump and Latifah's father, Ricky Jones, had a fight at the Lexington Inn, located at 138-05 Jamaica Ave., where Crump had rented a room for one night, according to the criminal complaint and police sources.
During the argument, Jones, 46, pulled Latifah from her mother's arms and swung his hand at Crump, hitting both her and their daughter, court records said.
Crump and both children were taken in an ambulance to nearby Jamaica Hospital.
Jones was arrested after the incident and charged with assault, endangering the welfare of a child and harassment.
He has since been released on $1,000 bail, according to city records. Jones, who had 29 prior arrests between 1989 and 2009, including for drunk driving and assault, is due back in court on Jan. 27.
His attorney did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
The fate of Latifah and Jaden was not immediately known Monday, but Jose Bayona, a spokesman for the city's Administration for Children's Services, said the agency “is ensuring the safety of all the children involved in this case.”
The agency declined to provide further details citing confidentiality laws.
Latifah wasn't reported missing until 5:15 a.m. on Dec. 15, when Jones' girlfriend called police to say that the girl and her mother hadn't returned from the hospital.
It took the city nearly 10 hours to alert the public about the missing girl because the Office of Emergency Management said that it did not have a photo of Latifah that was needed for the alert.
The New York State Police did not send an Amber alert in this case, officials said.
