A mother has been arrested for the murder of her toddler three years after claiming that the one-year-old died after getting “stuck” in a couch.
Brandy Lynn Parker, 39, was arrested on Wednesday morning and charged with one count of felony murder and one count of child abuse and neglect resulting in serious injury, according to Law & Crime.
The Lynchburg Police Department said in a press release that officers responded to a 911 call at around 10.40am on 23 January 2020 about an infant being discovered not breathing at an apartment building on Terre Drive.
Ms Parker was later identified as having made the call.
When officers arrived, they continued the life-saving efforts begun by Ms Parker until the arrival of the Lynchburg Fire Department, who attempted to save the child, taking the toddler to Lynchburg General Hospital in an ambulance. Not long after the child got to the hospital, the toddler was pronounced dead.
A search warrant was issued for a blood sample to be taken from Ms Parker. The warrant states that Ms Parker called 911, saying that her other child, aged two, “fell asleep on top of the [victim] on the couch. Parker allegedly added that she located the victim ‘stuck in the couch’”.
After taking the victim to the hospital, officers still at the scene said they “detected the odour of alcohol coming from Parker”.
The mother said she had been drinking the evening before.
Child Protective Services (CPS) was called in. Ms Parker agreed to take a preliminary blood test conducted by the agent from CPS, showing that she had a blood alcohol content of 0.14.
The authorities took a blood sample from Ms Parker for testing, saying that it was “due to the fact she was the sole caretaker of the [victim] and two-year-old at the time of the infant’s death”.
According to the warrant, police also took a bottle, blanket, formula, two onesies, and “swabs of the suspected area of death” during their investigation at the residence.
Ms Parker is held at the Blue Ridge Regional Jail without bond..
