Mother charged in 7-month-old’s drowning; tells police she went to garage to do nails
A mother was charged with manslaughter after authorities determined that her 7-month-old son drowned in a bathtub in her Miami-Dade County residence while she was in the garage doing her manicure.
Alyssa Carolyn Jimmie, age 22, was arrested on charges of aggravated manslaughter of a child under the age of 18, according to Miami-Dade jail records.
The toddler drowned in her residence on Southwest 154th Avenue on the afternoon of 20 May.
Jimmie, according to an arrest affidavit, placed the infant and his 3-year-old brother in a bathtub with the water flowing and then left the bathroom.
According to the affidavit, Jimmie stated that she felt safe leaving her children in the tub with the water flowing because she was lacking a drain plug and it allowed water to flow freely down the drain.
According to the affidavit, Jimmie stated that she left the children unattended while she went to her garage nail care station.
The garage is approximately 62 feet from the bathtub.
5 to 10 minutes later, according to the affidavit, Jimmie returned to check on them and discovered the drain blocked up with a small face towel and the tub full of water.
According to the affidavit, the infant was unconscious in the water while his brother played nearby in the bathtub.
According to the affidavit, Jimmie removed the infant from the tub and began CPR, but her mobile was not working, so she went next door to a neighbor who called 911.
The 7-month-old infant was transported to a local hospital where his heartbeat was restored, but he was deemed brain dead. On May 23, three days later, the infant was declared dead.
According to the affidavit, investigators determined that he had been receiving CPR without a heartbeat for approximately 45 minutes to one hour.
Jimmie reported that her three-year-old son was able to fill the bathtub by himself by clogging the drain with a towel.
When testing the bathtub, investigators discovered that when the drain wasn’t obstructed, the tub wouldn’t fill more than two inches. According to the affidavit, when the drain was clogged with the towel, it filled halfway in 5 minutes and completely in 10 min.
According to the affidavit, the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner conducted an autopsy that calculated the infant’s cause of death to be drowning and the manner of death to be an accident.
The affidavit said Jimmie “failed to provide ‘the victim’ with the proper care that a prudent person would consider essential to the well-being of a seven-month-old child,” and said her “negligence resulted in the untimely death of ‘the victim.'”
Jimmie is a member of the federally recognized and self-governing Miccosukee Tribe of Florida, according to the affidavit.
The bond for Jimmie was set at $10,000 on Thursday during her court appearance.
Judge Mindy Glazer remarked, “This is a sad set of facts.” I am saddened by the family’s loss.
