Mercer County, West Virginia. A woman from Mercer County is facing multiple charges after authorities claim she went to great lengths to hide her children from Child Protective Services, allegedly keeping them in dangerous and unsanitary conditions deep in the woods.
According to LOOTPRESS, Ashley Nicole Smith, 30, was arrested on April 16, 2025. She faces three counts of concealing a minor and gross child neglect and is being held at Southern Regional Jail on a $25,000 bond.
The investigation, led by Captain Steven A. Sommers of the Mercer County Sheriff’s Department, began in April 2023 after CPS received complaints about the children’s living conditions as well as concerns about drug use by Smith and the children’s father. At that time, the family lived in Bluefield.
According to reports, after being evicted, the family began moving frequently in order to avoid contact with CPS. Despite being apprehended briefly in December 2023, Smith and her partner allegedly refused drug tests. By May 2024, CPS had once again lost track of the family.
Family members later told investigators that the children were living in a trailer with no running water and surrounded by dangerous conditions, including snake infestations.
According to reports, the children were malnourished, dirty, and poorly clothed.
When CPS workers attempted to contact the children at the reported location in June 2024, the father allegedly ordered them to leave the property. On the same day, the court granted the children emergency custody.
Eventually, a tip directed deputies and CPS agents to a remote area off Old Coaldale Mountain Road in Bramwell. There, they discovered a makeshift camp in the woods.
The children were discovered living in tents with limited access to food, clean water, and shelter. Smith was discovered deeper in the woods, while his father was arrested on an unrelated warrant out of Virginia.
Authorities described the children’s condition as “extremely poor,” citing visible injuries, dirt-covered skin, and inadequate clothing.
One child reportedly had insects jump off her while being transported by a CPS worker.
In a forensic interview conducted in July 2024, one child revealed to investigators that they had been moved four times in a single month to avoid CPS detection.
She also stated that they frequently went hungry and slept outside while their parents remained in the car.
Medical records later revealed that two of the children had never been vaccinated, and none were receiving regular medical care.
The investigation is ongoing.
