This story contains graphic description.
A Kansas City mother accidentally killed her newborn by putting the baby down for a nap in the oven instead of the crib, authorities said on Saturday.
Mariah Thomas, 26, has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child for the inexplicable tragedy.
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“We appreciate all first responders who worked this scene and the prosecutors who went to the scene in order to issue these charges,” Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said in announcing the charge.
“We acknowledge the gruesome nature of this tragedy and our hearts are weighted by the loss of this precious life. We trust the criminal justice system to respond appropriately to these awful circumstances.”
Baker said that police got a 911 call about an infant who wasn’t breathing and responded to Thomas’ home to find the 1-month-old with burns.
‘The victim was located in the living room, lying in a car seat just inside the front door,” a police affidavit said. “The victim had sustained apparent thermal injuries on various parts of her body.
“She was clothes in a bodysuit over a diaper. The clothing appeared to have melted into the diaper, and it was very dirty, possibly burned on the backside. A baby blanket with significant burn marks was located in the living room and was collected.”
