Stephanie May Whitier (Columbus Police Division)
A 26-year-old mother in Ohio was arrested last week after she was seen injecting her 9-month-old daughter with an unknown substance that left the little girl in critical condition. Stephanie May Whitley was taken into police custody Friday afternoon and charged with one count of felony assault resulting in grievous bodily harm, according to court records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
According to a news release from the Columbus Police Division, officers responded Friday, April 5 at approximately 11:31 a.m. to an emergency call about a baby in distress following suspicion of child abuse at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, located in the 700 block of Children’s Drive. . Officers from the department’s Office of Special Investigations – Child Physical Abuse Unit were dispatched to the scene.
Upon arriving at the hospital, police said they were told Whitley and the child’s father were in hospital with their 9-month-old daughter that morning when hospital staff allegedly saw Whitley take out a syringe and inject the infant with a substance of unknown origin. origin or purpose.
After the injection, the baby’s health — identified in the police report by the initials “KS” — rapidly deteriorated. By the time authorities arrived at the facility, hospital staff reportedly said medical staff had been forced to take life-saving measures on the infant and then checked him into the intensive care unit.
According to a Columbus Dispatch report, before being admitted to intensive care, the victim went into cardiac arrest. Doctors reportedly performed toxicology tests on the child in an attempt to determine what substance Whitley injected into his body, but those results have not been made public.
Police arrested Whitley later that day and took her to the Franklin County Jail, where she is currently being held without bond.
The child’s father, who is believed to have been in the room when Whitley allegedly injected their child with the unknown substance, has not been charged in connection with the alleged assault.
Whitley is currently scheduled to appear before a judge in Franklin County Municipal Court for his preliminary hearing on May 15, records show.
Authorities urged anyone with relevant information about the incident to contact the Columbus Police Department’s Child Abuse Special Investigations Unit at 614-645-4305 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS. (8477).
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