Mom abducts her injured 10-month-old baby girl from hospital, Missouri officials say
A mom has been charged after she abducted her infant daughter from a hospital, Missouri officials say.
The 24-year-old is charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child after she violated a protective order and took her injured 10-month-old from a St. Louis county children’s hospital, according to a news release from St. Louis County Police Department.
McClatchy News is not naming the mother to protect the identity of her daughter.
Police said the baby was admitted to the hospital with critical injuries that had been caused by neglect, including rickets, pneumonia, severe malnutrition, failure to thrive and around 17 bone fractures due to a lack of care. A protective custody order was issued, but the child’s mother fled the hospital against doctor’s orders.
After fleeing, the mother refused to return her child to the hospital for treatment, troopers said. Doctors warned that the infant was in imminent danger of death if she did not immediately get care.
Missouri state troopers issued an amber alert just before 2 a.m. Nov. 3. The alert was canceled just after 4 a.m. when the baby was found and her mother was taken into custody, according to troopers.
In an interview with police, the mother said she knew her daughter was underdeveloped and was aware of her injuries and deformities.
Police say the baby is safe, but there is no further updates on her condition.
St. Louis County Bureau of Crimes Against Persons detectives are leading the investigation.
This story was originally published November 3, 2022 at 12:44 PM.
