Is this the sixteenth baby in Milwaukee to die this year as a result of co-sleeping?
From FOX6 News:
The Medical Examiner’s Office is investigating the death of a two-month-old baby girl. Initial reports indicate the infant was co-sleeping with her mother in an adult bed.The mother claims she had only one Mike's Hard Lemonade. The residence was clean and well-kept and there was plenty of food in the house.
According to authorities, officers responded to an apartment complex on Lovers Lane near Silver Spring Dr. for a “death on entry” call around 4:47 a.m. Monday, November 11th.
The infant was pronounced dead at 6:12 a.m.
...The Medical Examiner’s report says the baby and her two-year-old sister were bathed Sunday night, and then the children’s father arrived to take the two-year-old to his residence.
The report says the baby’s mother went out for a cigarette, during which time the baby was watched by the mother’s roommates, according to the Medical Examiner’s report.
The baby was then placed in the adult bed with the mother, according to the Medical Examiner’s report. The baby was placed with her head and neck on a regular sized pillow and covered with a thin sheet up to the baby’s waist. The baby’s mother laid on the baby’s left side, facing her — according to the Medical Examiner’s report.
Around 4:30, the baby’s mother woke up and noticed the baby unresponsive.
...The report indicates the baby’s mother told officials she had consumed one 12-ounce Mike’s Hard Lemonade beverage the previous night. No other alcohol or drug use was reported.
The Medical Examiner’s report says the residence was clean and well-kept, and the refrigerator and pantry were well-stocked with food.
Inside the home, a Medical Examiner discovered a bassinet next to the bed that appeared clean and functional.
SO WHAT?
A baby girl is dead after sharing a bed with her mother.
A bassinet was available for the infant but the mother chose not to use it.
This is not OK.
We don't know yet if this baby girl died from the unsafe sleeping environment, but we do know she is dead and had been co-sleeping.
I don't care if the mother or caregiver is sober or under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol when a baby is smothered to death because the little one wasn't given a safe place to sleep.
These adults should be held responsible for the deaths of the babies in their care.
There would be more outrage from the community if sixteen puppies had been smothered by their owners.
That's sick.
