Mum pleads for understanding after leaving her baby in a shopping trolley

We've all had it: that gnawing feeling you've forgotten something... something important.  For one young mum however, the feeling turned into a very real nightmare, when she realised she'd left her two-month-old baby boy at the supermarket after popping in to pick up treats for her nephew's birthday party. Twenty-seven-year-old mum of four, Cherish Peterson has been charged with child endangerment after a police officer discovered baby Huxton sitting in his baby carrier inside a shopping trolley in the grocery store car park. But the distraught mum, who realised her baby was missing when one of the other kids in the back seat asked after their brother 40 minutes later, insists the incident was unintentional, and appeared on local television in Phoenix, Arizona in an emotional interview to plead for forgiveness. Speaking to CBS 5 News, Peterson said:

"I got into my car, and normally I put my cart away. "But I didn't need to because I parked at the front of the store and I never park there. And I drove away. "As I was pulling into the garage, my three-year-old goes, 'Where's baby Huxton?' His car seat is right behind me. I turned around and realised it was gone."

Mrs Peterson's husband Nathan fully supports his wife and is hoping to help clear her name after the scary incident:

"A mistake was made, and we learned, but we're not perfect." he said. "But we love our family and we love our children and we are grateful that everything is okay."

What do you think, are the authorities being too tough on this frazzled mum? Let us know on Twitter @HerFamilydotie.