Alyssa Wehmeyer (Scott County Sheriff’s Office).
A mother from Missouri was accused of leaving her 1-year-old baby alone for extended periods and failing to provide food to the child for 43 hours, claiming she had a migraine.
The investigation by the Missouri Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control was prompted by the suspicious death of the 1-year-old on Feb. 28. Police stated that the infant exhibited severe malnourishment and neglect, ultimately leading to the child’s demise. It was revealed in the probable cause affidavit that Wehmeyer allegedly last fed her baby on Feb. 26.
Authorities found the baby deceased on Feb. 28 and subsequently conducted an autopsy. The autopsy results indicated that the cause of death was dehydration, with minimal evidence of food in the stomach. Wehmeyer was arrested by the police, informed of her rights, and subjected to questioning.
Wehmeyer allegedly told police that she had last fed her baby on Feb. 26 between 5 and 6 p.m. — approximately 36 hours before it was estimated that the baby died. The following day, 24 hours after the last time she fed the baby, she put the child to bed at about 6:30 p.m. after a diaper change. Police asked Wehmeyer about the “severe blisters” found on the baby, a symptom of diaper rash, and she informed police that she had last changed the baby’s diaper “nearly 19 hours” before the child’s estimated time of death.
At around 2 a.m. on the morning of Feb. 28, Wehmeyer heard the baby crying, attended to the baby for about 30 to 40 minutes, then put the baby back to bed. At around 1 p.m. that day, Wehmeyer told police that the baby wasn’t breathing and the toddler’s lips were blue. She told police that she should have taken the baby to the doctor on Feb. 27, but she “had a migraine” and took a nap.
In the arrest warrant, prosecutors accused Wehmeyer of neglecting the baby “for approximately 43 hours.”
Wehmeyer was arrested and charged with abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death. She is being held at Scott County Jail on $100,000 cash bond. Her first court appearance is scheduled for March 6.
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