A Florida mom allowed her infant son to die from burns suffered in the bathtub because she feared losing custody if she called 911, it was reported Friday.
Christina Hurt, 35, was charged with aggravated manslaughter over the death of her 1-year-old child, Ethan Coley, NBC 6 reported.
The Miami-Dade County mother told authorities she left her home Wednesday night to take out the garbage and when she returned, her 10-year-old daughter was holding a screaming Coley, according to ABC 10. The child suffered severe burns on half his body because Hurt’s daughter tried to bathe Coley in scalding water, according to the report.
When Hurt realized Coley was burned, she avoided seeking medical help at the risk of losing custody of her son, ABC 10 reported.
“I hear them screaming across the street ‘please help save my baby!’ so I said I’m going to go and see what’s going on over there. It’s a little child, I have to go,” witness Randolph Joseph told NBC 6. “So I run over to help, when I go I see them shaking the baby but the baby was gone already so we tried to do CPR.”