Mother charged with neglect after death of 1-year-old
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — An Indianapolis woman faces charges for the death of her 1-year-old daughter in November 2020.
Alexandria Jones, 25, is charged with three counts of felony child neglect, including neglect of a dependent resulting in death and neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury.
According to court documents, Jones tells police that she had been giving her daughter, 1-year-old Kamilah Hernandez, a bath in the kitchen sink on the morning of Nov. 23, 2020.
Jones tells police that she walked away from the sink to grab a towel, and Hernandez stood, trying to get out of the sink. Jones said that Hernandez must have accidentally turned the faucet toward her, court documents say.
According to court papers, Jones tells police that she had left the water temperature at lukewarm, and Hernandez “must have turned the cold water knob…down, causing the water to get hot.”
The exposure to hot water caused burns on Hernandez’s abdomen, legs, back, buttocks, and genitalia, court papers say. After the incident, Jones tells police she “eventually decided to call an emergency clinic and inquire how to treat burns.”
After calling the clinic, court documents say, Jones began “treating the injury with aloe vera ointment and gauze,” along with changing the gauze every 3-4 hours.
Jones tells police that she did not seek any other treatment for Hernandez until three days later on Nov. 26, 2020, when the child began to have trouble breathing. Jones also tells police that Hernandez was unable to hold down food, vomiting throughout the day on Nov. 26.
After Hernandez began experiencing rapid and shallow breathing, Jones decided to call 911 for medical assistance, court papers say.
Court papers say Hernandez was taken to IU Health Riley Hospital for Children and died shortly after her arrival on Nov. 26, 2020. After she died, doctors discovered that she had burns on 25% of her body, court papers say.
An autopsy determined that Hernandez died of thermal injury. The coroner also found that the girl had suffered several broken bones, including bones in her left arm and leg.
Court documents say that an investigator with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, who responded to Jones’ 911 call, says that the burn patterns on Hernandez’s body were inconsistent with Jones’ statement. The investigator found no records of Jones’ phone call to the emergency clinic.
Jones was being held in the Marion County jail on a $100,000 surety bond and was due in court for a preliminary hearing on Friday.