Fl. mom who left 9-month-old son unattended in bathtub while she napped charged with manslaughter
Sheriff’s deputies who responded to the drowning death of a nine-month-old baby boy in Hobe Sound, Florida, on December 20, 2019, said at the time that they found the circumstances surrounding that drowning to be “very suspicious.” On January 2, 2020, detectives with the Martin County Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Division, along with the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, arrested the mother of that baby boy.
Heather Clifford, 29, was taken into custody yesterday and charged with aggravated manslaughter in the death of her son Cameron Davis. Deputies said that no other charges are expected at this time.
“From what the mother says, she set the child into the bathtub because the child had a dirty diaper. Allegedly, she just left the water trickling, intending to come back. Instead of coming back, she went to sleep,” Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said. ~ WPTV
Following her arrest, the Florida mom was transported to Martin County Jail where she’s being held on a $250,000 bond.
See Ace News Today’s original article from December 21, 2019:
Tragedy descends upon the town of Hobe Sound, Florida, as law enforcement officials investigate the suspicious bathtub drowning death of a nine-month old baby boy. Martin County Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Detectives report that the baby boy was left unattended in the bathtub of his home on SE Parkway Drive in Hobe Heights around 11:30 a.m. on Friday, December 20.
The child’s parents found the infant face down in the water after the mother, identified as Heather Clifford, told investigators she left him in the tub unattended for at least 20-minutes while she took a nap. The child’s father, identified as Shawn Stewart Davis, told detectives he was sleeping when the baby’s mother woke him up to tell him that their son was in the tub face down and was blue.
The sheriff said when deputies arrived, they found the baby’s father giving him CPR. The child was taken to the hospital and pronounced deceased.
“Obviously a 9-month-old alone in a bathtub could be prevented,” said Sheriff Snyder. “It’s very suspicious.” ~ WPTV
Despite efforts by dispatchers giving CPR instructions, and further efforts by deputies and Martin County Firefighters, the child was pronounced dead at the hospital. Two other children under the age of five were also in the home at the time. The Department of Children and Families (DCF) has since removed the other two children, ages two and three, from the home.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said that deputies had to respond to this home at least three times in the past, one of which was to assist DCF in a matter.
An autopsy on nine-month old Cameron Davis is scheduled for Monday. Investigators will work closely with the State Attorney’s Office to determine if either parent will face charges.
For more on yesterday’s arrest of Heather Clifford, see the video accompanying this article.
(Source: Martin County Sheriff’s Office)
~ Written by: Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Follow Richard on Facebook and Twitter
