Police: Florida Woman Strangled Baby With Christmas Lights

A Florida woman has been arrested after authorities reported she likely strangled her own 1-year-old daughter with a strand of holiday lights. WFTV News reports that Kristen DePasquale has been indicted on multiple charges in association with last week’s incident. However, the Oviedo mom isn’t fessing up to what authorities say she’s done. Instead, she said her other child was responsible for the death of the infant.

The incident reportedly took place on Thursday. Authorities in Oviedo were alerted to a home on Covington Street, where a 1-year-old infant was found inside in cardiac arrest. Police noted, at the time, that the infant had holiday lights wrapped around her neck. The Florida woman told authorities that she had left the baby alone with her older brother for just a brief amount of time, which was long enough for her to get a shower while the two children watched television in the living room.

Kristen DePasquale reportedly told police that her other child might have killed her one-year-old daughter. However, detectives noted that the woman’s story began to “fall apart” as they interrogated her. The Oviedo Police Department produced a news release, which indicated that they believe she was solely responsible for the death of her daughter.

“Detectives discovered there were multiple inconsistencies in DePasquale’s statements. Additionally, the medical examiner ruled the death a homicide by strangulation and informed detectives the injuries appeared to be a result of more force than the slightly older brother could have made.”

In other words, medical examiners say that the Florida woman’s other child couldn’t have been strong enough to strangle the 1-year-old old infant with the strand of Christmas lights. The Orlando Sentinel reports that the 27-year-old mother was arrested on Monday, after detectives quickly concluded their investigation.

Behind bars: Woman arrested for ‘killing infant son’: Police say woman strangled her son due to child custody… https://t.co/SijE6hWaAQ

— Zeeshan Asif???????? (@ZeeSaying) September 19, 2016

Along with inconsistencies in her story, detectives said the Florida woman’s home didn’t display any evidence to collaborate with the story she provided. DePasquale told police that she had been in the shower at the time of the incident, and that when she emerged from the bathroom, her son began apologizing “for hurting his sister.” However, detectives found no evidence that she had even taken a shower in the home that night. The bathroom was dry, and there were no damp or wet towels present at the time of the incident.

Police say that DePasquale was also wearing makeup when they arrived to discover that her 1-year-old daughter had been fatally strangled. She also reportedly refused to take a drug test.

Sadly, this isn’t the first time a mother has been accused of strangling her own children to death. In 2014, a Utah woman was arrested after the remains of at least seven newborn children were found in her garage. Megan Huntsman is accused of strangling her babies before hiding them. New York Daily News reported that the woman’s estranged husband made the macabre discovery that led to her arrest.

This also isn’t the first time a child has been accused of responsibility in the death of a younger child. Earlier this year, a Florida woman was arrested after her 13-day-old daughter was violently beaten to death. Authorities believe that the infant’s six-year-old brother is behind the fatal beating. Nonetheless, People reports that 62-year-old Kathleen Marie Steel is being held responsible for the heartbreaking incident.

Child blind cord death ‘accident’: A coroner warns of the dangers of roller blinds after a toddler was strangled… http://t.co/3VjqOFYe

— News Wales (@NewsWales) March 15, 2012

As for this latest case out of Florida. Police said that a judge has ordered DePasquale’s other child to be removed from her custody. The little boy has been placed in the care of his grandparents. Furthermore, his mother is barred from having any unsupervised visits. Meanwhile, the Florida woman has been charged with child neglect and first-degree murder.

[Featured Image by Oviedo Police Department]