Teen Mother Charged with Murder After Baby Dies from Alleged Exposure to Wet Blanket and Air Conditioning Reports
A 3-month-old baby died in Georgia after being put in front of an air conditioner with a wet towel on top of it. A mother and two other people have been charged with murder.
People looked at the case record and learned that around 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 6, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office got a call about “an unknown situation” at the Budget Inn hotel at 1616 Gordon Highway.
Police say that baby Josiah Noel Seright was found in a car seat next to an air conditioner at the hotel, wrapped in a wet blanket. This is what WJBF, WSAZ-TV, and The Augusta Chronicle all reported.
Several news sources say that the unit was set to 61 degrees for an unknown amount of time while September De’asia Seright, 19, the baby’s mother, and Lamisha Diane Seright, 42, and Bennie Antonio Nash, 39, stayed in the room and sat on a couch and a bed.
A case report shows that the baby was taken to Wellstar MCG Health for treatment, but at 2:37 a.m., he was declared dead.
The baby died of hypothermia and breathing problems, according to stories from WJBF, The Augusta Chronicle, and The Augusta Press. The case is still being looked into.
A person can get hypothermia if they are in “cold, wet, or windy conditions,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“If you stay out in the cold for a long time, your body will use up all the energy it has stored and your temperature will start to drop.” The Cleveland Clinic also says that hypothermia is a medical emergency that needs to be treated right away. They say this because babies have the most surface area for their weight and lose heat the fastest.
You can go to www.childhelp.org or call 1-800-4-A-CHILD, which is the National Child Abuse Hotline if you think a child is being abused. No one will be able to hear your calls for any reason. 24/7, the number can be called in more than 170 languages.