The world is full of terrible parents, but only a few stories are so outrageous that they get circulated around the globe.

Like the dad who stuffed his son into the trunk of his car, this woman's story is grabbing people's attention in the worst way.

This "party mom" left her 4-year-old child home alone for hours so that she could go out and party all night.

Alexandra Ciliento is 29 years old and has a 4-year-old daughter. They live in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Authorities say that she left the house at 11pm on Saturday, leaving her young daughter home alone.

While Ciliento was gone, her daughter managed to escape the home.

What could have ended in tragedy -- well, a greater tragedy than this kind of neglect and endangerment -- was averted because the girl had the presence of mind to go to a neighbor's.

The neighbor waited for a full 45 minutes, perhaps hoping that Ciliento had just stepped out and would return. Then, the neighbor called the police.

Police were unable to reach Ciliento until after 8am the following morning, which makes it sounds as though Ciliento was partying until after dawn.

Ciliento admitted to police that she left her apartment and that she did not try to get a babysitter for her 4-year-old.

According to court documents, she "was not aware that her child could open a locked door and leave the residence."

Ciliento normally shares custody with the child's father.

At present, the child is with him, and Ciliento has been instructed that she is to have no contact with her daughter for the time being.

She is being charged with one count of child abuse.

Ciliento reportedly works as a pilates instructor and fitness trainer.

"Always do what makes you happy and be kind to others," she says in her gym profile. "For everyone is fighting some kind of battle "

She also says that, as a child, she wanted to grow up to be President of the United States.

(There are seemingly no qualifications for that job anymore except for the age limit, so who knows?)

The judge appointed a public defender as Ciliento's attorney to represent her.

Obviously, a huge factor in why this particular story has gone viral is that it reminds so many people of Casey Anthony.

Ciliento, thankfully, did not murder her daughter. And there have been no reports of her binding or drugging her, either.

But leaving a 4-year-old alone for 9 or more hours is a huge risk. Ciliento is a grown adult -- she was born in 1988. She should know this.

It is difficult to imagine what sort of excuse she might use to try to justify this. It is almost impossible to imagine any defense being well-received by anyone.

We hope that, whatever happens, the court puts the life and safety of this 4-year-old girl above all other priorities.