An Indiana mother allegedly confessed to local police that she became so angry with her 6-month-old daughter that she shook the little girl, who had "numerous visible injuries" at the time of her death, according to the county prosecutor's office.
Investigators said that the mother was fully aware that shaking a baby can be fatal after she allegedly admitted that she had "researched" Shaken Baby Syndrome prior to her daughter's death.
Alauraeve Allen, 24, of Elkhart, Indiana, has been arrested on suspicion of murder and neglect of a dependent following her baby's death earlier this month, according to an online statement shared Friday by the Elkhart County Prosecutor's office. Formal charges are expected to be filed next week, Prosecutor Vicki Elaine Becker said, adding that Allen is being held without bond in the Elkhart County Jail until her initial court hearing on August 3 in the Elkhart Circuit Court.
Newsweek reached out via email on Saturday to the Elkhart Police Department (EPD), Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of Elkhart County and the Elkhart County Sheriff's Department for comment.
Shortly before 8 p.m. on July 7, Elkhart police and fire departments were dispatched to Middlebury Street in Elkhart, Indiana, after getting a call about a baby that was unconscious and not breathing, Becker said. After arriving at the scene, first responders "rendered aid" to the infant. She was transported to Elkhart General Hospital before being sent to South Bend Memorial Hospital, where the 6-month-old baby died from her injuries on July 8, the prosecutor said.
Investigators with the Elkhart County Homicide Unit observed "numerous visible injuries on the baby's body," according Becker. A forensic autopsy was performed on the infant at the Homer Stryker School of Medicine located at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where the cause of the little girl's death was ruled a homicide, the prosecutor said.
Becker said that Allen initially told authorities she had left her daughter in the care of friends, and that after returning home, the baby had vomited on her so she "took a long bath." After finishing, she was allegedly told that her baby was not breathing so she called 911, the prosecutor said.
On Wednesday, Allen was interviewed again by law enforcement at which time she admitted that she "had been angry with the baby and shook her" on July 6 in their apartment on Middlebury Street, Becker said. Allen also confessed to authorities that she had "struck the baby" and had caused injuries on other occasions, according to the prosecutor.
"Ms. Allen further advised that the baby appeared to be cold after the shaking event and began vomiting, but she did not take the baby for medical assistance at that time," Becker said in the statement. "Ms. Allen also stated that she has researched 'shaken baby syndrome' before and understood that a possible consequence of shaking an infant is death."
Shaken Baby Syndrome is a "serious form of abuse inflicted upon a child," according to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), which is a is a scientific and educational association with more than 12,000 members. AANS notes that Shaken Baby Syndrome usually occurs when a parent or other caregiver shakes a baby out of "anger or frustration, often because the baby will not stop crying."
Babies have very weak neck muscles, according to AANS, which states that severe shaking causes the baby's head to move violently back and forth, resulting in brain injury.
Earlier this month, Allen was accused of "endangering" another child and faces charges in that case where investigators say a child molested a toddler while in her care, local media reports.
She faces two felony neglect of a dependent charges over the incident, which were filed earlier this month, according to local news outlet WNDU citing court documents.
Police say Allen knew about the molestation but did not report it or take measures to prevent it from happening again. The initial hearing for the molestation case is scheduled for July 25, WNDU reports.
The investigation into the death of Allen's infant daughter is ongoing, Becker said.
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Maura Zurick is the Newsweek Weekend Night Editor based in Cleveland, Ohio. Her focus is reporting on U.S. national news ... Read more
