Police said Jessie Waldroup and Desirae Uzunboylu were arrested Sept. 17 on child-neglect charges after their 6-month-old daughter was found unresponsive in her playpen Sept. 8, while they slept. Hospital staff measured her blood alcohol at 0.383; both were released on bond.
According to an affidavit, the couple’s 7-year-old son found the baby after returning from school and called 911. Medical staff told police that without the boy finding her and calling 911, she likely would have died. They also described bruises as highly suspicious for non-accidental trauma.
The couple denied using alcohol or drugs and said they had no idea how the baby got alcohol. They later told police it was possible Waldroup used a relative’s water bottle, which had been filled with vodka, to make the baby’s bottle at the beach the previous day. The boy said he saw Waldroup give her a bottle there; the relative said the vodka-filled bottle had disappeared from his backpack. Police found the feeding bottle with a strong smell of alcohol.