Penn. Mother Who Was Co-Sleeping with Her Baby Now Charged After Child's Death: Reports
Pennsylvania mom Shante R. Plummer has reportedly been charged in connection with her baby’s death, and officials believe co-sleeping may have been a factor.
According to WGAL, last week, Plummer, 39, was charged with criminal homicide and endangering the welfare of children in connection with the Oct. 2018 death of her 2-month-old daughter. WHTM reports that Plummer is being held in the Dauphin County Prison in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, without bail.
The Dauphin County District Attorney said the baby showed signs of abuse after her death and died as a “result of violence,” WHTM reports. WGAL also reported that the infant had six broken ribs.
The Dauphin County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
According to The Patriot-News, last October officers responded to a report of a baby who was having “breathing issues and may pass.”
Citing the affidavit, The Patriot-News reports that the baby girl was taken to a hospital where she later died.
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Plummer and her daughter had been co-sleeping in the same bed before the infant’s death, The Patriot-News reported. Plummer originally claimed that she had been woken up by her child’s crying and found her on the floor next to the bed. However, Plummer later told paramedics that she woke up and found her daughter unresponsive, omitting the detail about her daughter’s crying.
According to The Patriot-News, Plummer admitted to smoking marijuana the night prior, which a blood draw confirmed.
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The newspaper also reported that the bed in which the two were co-sleeping in was tilted, with one side eight inches higher than the rest. Plummer reportedly told officials that she was sleeping on the higher side while the baby was on the lower side.
The Patriot-News reports that police believe Plummer may have rolled on top of the baby on the tilted bed and laid on her for “some period of time” while intoxicated and asleep.
According to WHTM, Plummer’s preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 19.
