Mom ditched bassinet because infant was 'uncomfortable,' wedging baby between parents in bed where daughter later died, police say

An Indiana mother was arrested months after her baby died from a lack of oxygen to her brain.

Shiann Bodkins, 19, was charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death in connection with her baby’s May death. According to court documents obtained by local NBC affiliate WTHR, police were called to a home in Marion, Indiana, on May 3 after receiving reports about a “child in life-threatening condition.” Bodkins’ baby daughter was taken to a hospital, where she died on May 9.

When police interviewed Bodkins, she allegedly told them that she was co-sleeping with her baby because the infant was “uncomfortable” sleeping in a bassinet.

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Police said Bodkins told them that even though she “knew” co-sleeping with her baby was wrong, she claimed the baby slept better in her bed, which meant she also slept better. Bodkins told police that if she and the baby co-slept, another family member would keep an eye on the baby while Bodkins was asleep.

According to the court documents, Bodkins told police her mother woke her up around 10 a.m. and told her the baby was “awake, moving and making noise.” At 10:30 a.m. on May 3, Bodkins told police her mother woke her up again and told her the baby was not moving or breathing, according to reporting on the documents by local Fox affiliate WXIN.

Police said an autopsy listed the baby’s cause of death as “anoxic encephalopathy and an unsafe sleep environment.”

When police asked Bodkins about the night before the baby was found unresponsive, she said she was playing video games with her mother before turning in for the night. She told police that between 5:30 and 6 a.m., the baby’s father woke her up so he could get some sleep and she began watching the baby.

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Police said Bodkins got up with the baby to feed and change her. Bodkins then told police she went back to bed, placing the baby between her and the baby’s father. According to court documents, she repeated that routine a couple of hours later before her mother woke her up at 10 a.m.

Bodkins did not appear on the Grant County Sheriff’s Office jail roster on Wednesday. She is scheduled to appear in court again on Nov. 6.

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