A 19-year-old woman was detained by Florida authorities after she allegedly gave birth to a baby in her college dorm room’s toilet, killed the girl, and disposed of the body in a garbage can.
The Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office has charged Brianna Moore with aggravated manslaughter of a child and child maltreatment with grave bodily damage.
On April 27, Moore’s roommates at the University of Tampa’s McKay Hall called the police after discovering blood on their bathroom floor and hearing a baby cry. Moore denied being pregnant and attributed the blood to her menstrual cycle when paramedics checked on her.
However, the following day, Moore’s roommates discovered a bloody towel in his trash can and phoned the police once more. When the officers opened the towel, they discovered the dead infant inside.
“When Tampa Police interviewed Moore that day, she admitted to delivering the baby in the bathroom and holding the baby tightly to her body until she stopped crying,” according to the prosecutors.
Then Moore admitted to throwing the girl in the garbage. According to an arrest report acquired by the Tampa Bay Times, she informed police that she believed the baby was dead after Miranda.
According to reports, she cleansed the girl with water after taking a shower, placed her on the floor of her bedroom, and then dozed off for around an hour. According to the complaint, the girl wrapped the newborn in the towel after waking up since she was still not showing any signs of life. According to investigators, she denied being pregnant.
According to an autopsy, she died from suffocation brought on by torso compression. She suffered from lung hemorrhage and multiple damaged ribs. Homicide was the cause of death.
In her home state of Mississippi, police apprehended the defendant after obtaining an arrest warrant. She is awaiting her return to Florida through extradition. She is also accused of failing to notify law police or a medical examiner of her death and of unlawfully storing, preserving, or transporting human remains.
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“It breaks my heart to know that this baby girl could still be alive today if this woman had alerted authorities that she needed help. Instead, she took actions that directly lead to the death of her newborn baby. This is a difficult and nuanced case to prosecute, and our community must continue to educate women about the many resources available to them in situations like this one. This baby’s death was avoidable,” State Attorney Suzy Lopez stated.
Florida, like many other states, has a Safe Haven Law that permits anyone to drop off an unwanted baby at a hospital or fire station within 30 days without being asked. Moore could have done it easily, according to Lopez.
At a press conference, Lopez seemed to suppress his tears as he remarked, “For crying out loud, there’s a fire station across the street from the University of Tampa. Tampa General Hospital is a mere two to three minutes away by car.”
