Mother Arrested For Death Of Severely Starved, Malnourished Infant Son

A mother was arrested in Jacksonville, Florida, after she took her severely malnourished and abused baby boy to a hospital, where he eventually died.

The 5-month-old infant weighed only 7 pounds and appeared emaciated, according to a police report cited by News4JAX Thursday. Tania McGowan, 23, said she found her child unresponsive at an apartment complex on Duval Road and took him to the hospital on Dec. 11.

Doctors informed the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office about the child's death because the infant appeared severely malnourished and dehydrated. The child's cheeks were sunken in, his stomach had caved in and his rib cage was protruding, doctors added.

A medical examiner also found that his stomach and intestines showed no evidence of food, according to First Coast News.

McGowan told the police that she woke up around 11 a.m. on Dec. 11 but did not immediately check on her baby. It was only around 2 p.m. when she took a look at her son and found that he was asleep.

McGowan told investigators that when she later took a bottle of formula to him at around 6 p.m., she found that her son was unresponsive and cold to the touch.

As the investigation ensued, officials found surveillance footage from a common area in the apartment complex's clubhouse that captured McGowan abusing her son. The mother repeatedly slapped her son in the head and face and twisted his head in the video footage from Dec. 6. She walked away after covering his face with a large pillow.

During an interrogation on Dec. 14, McGowan told officials that she did notice her son "slimming down." However, she dismissed it thinking the infant was just growing taller in height.

McGowan was arrested and is being held at the Duval County jail on a $1.5 million bond. She was charged with child abuse and child neglect for her son's death.

Officials are still waiting on autopsy results to determine the infant's cause of death.

Dr. Justin D'Arienzo, a clinical and forensic psychologist, spoke to News4JAX and said there can be both societal as well as parental reasons that lead to child abuse.

"Some of the societal factors are violence and poverty and the factors related to the parent would be substance abuse, mental health problems or if they've been abused themselves or lack of parenting skills," D'Arienzo told the outlet.

Such tragedies can possibly be avoided if friends and family check in on new parents, he said, adding that "one of the best things people can do is make sure that person has support, because that's another risk factor — not having enough support."