A mother in Louisiana has been accused of murder after she brought her 5-year-old daughter to a hospital claiming she had been injured in a car crash.
Alexandria Police said Tuesday that on July 17, Jasmine Anderson, 24, brought her daughter Audrey Lynn Chelette to a local hospital's emergency room saying they'd been in a bad car accident that injured her 5-year-old's neck. Doctors were unable to save Audrey as she was determined to be dead on arrival.
According to a statement from the department, investigators called out to the hospital spent several hours searching for the scene of the car accident, but came up empty. Police also determined the 5-year-old's injuries were inconsistent with those that might be suffered in a car accident.
An autopsy performed the next day on July 18, found the child died from an injury to her neck. Later that day, officers were able to locate the scene where the incident took place and did not find a car accident as Anderson had indicated in her initial report to police.
After further investigation, Anderson was arrested and charged with Second Degree murder. She was taken to the Avoyelles Parish Detention Center where she was booked and interviewed. She was later transported to the Rapides Parish Detention Center.
“I want to thank all of our officers who worked so hard to investigate this case,” said Chief Jerrod King. “The wrongful death of a child is a horrible thing to see, and these men and women have maintained their professionalism and pursued the case with their customary diligence.
“I want to specifically commend Sergeant Butler and Corporal Daigre of our Traffic Division, who spent hours painstakingly recreating the suspect’s movements and discovering the location of the crime. I also want to thank District Attorney Phillip Terrell, with whom we’ve been working on this case since the beginning to ensure a complete and thorough investigation.”
Detectives say they're still actively investigating the case.
Photo: Alexandria Police Department