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Breastfeeding Mom Accused of Killing Newborn With Her Breast Milk

NewsPublished Jun 21, 2023
By Genny Glassman
breastfeeding mom charged with murderEvgeniyShkolenko/iStock; filo/iStock

A new mom was arrested and charged with second-degree murder after being accused of killing her newborn daughter by breastfeeding her. Brandi Froeba from Louisiana, who was 35 at the time, allegedly nursed her 6-week-old daughter after using methamphetamine, an illegal narcotic that police believe poisoned her baby through her breast milk.

The mom called 911 to report the incident after she found her newborn not breathing after they had both fallen asleep. The baby's cause of death was later revealed through a blood test.

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The alleged crime happened in August of 2018 and drew attention after the mom called 911 to report that her daughter was unresponsive.-placeholder
The alleged crime happened in August of 2018 and drew attention after the mom called 911 to report that her daughter was unresponsive.
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The alleged crime happened in August 2018 and drew attention after the mom called 911 to report that her daughter was unresponsive.

Froeba called for help on August 16, after she breastfed her daughter Daisy earlier that day and then both fell asleep, according to People. Froeba reportedly told police that when she woke up hours later, she noticed that Daisy wasn't breathing. The mom quickly dialed 911, and officers who arrived on the scene tried to revive the infant. They then rushed Daisy to Ochsner Medical Center — Kenner, where the baby was declared dead.

At the scene, officers didn't originally notice anything unusual about the girl, but a blood test analysis revealed she had methamphetamine in her blood.

At the time, police did notice that Froeba was lethargic and her speech was slurred — which was suspicious considering her daughter was in peril. So they asked Froeba to give a blood sample and she agreed to do it, but she reportedly told them that she had smoked marijuana the previous day.

The next day, an autopsy was performed on Daisy in which preliminary blood analysis revealed methamphetamine was in her system. As additional testing was being completed, Froeba's blood sample also came back positive for methamphetamine.

By that November, the medical autopsy report officially stated that Daisy had died from methamphetamine toxicity.

According to Kenner police, Daisy's death was then classified as a homicide. In Louisiana, when someone provides drugs to another person who overdoses after ingesting them, authorities can file murder charges. In addition, adults found guilty of criminally negligent mistreatment of a child that results in the child's death, such as having the child around drug activity, can face murder charges, reports the New Orleans Advocate.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the first time that one of Froeba's children had been caught with drugs in their system. In 2016, Froeba allegedly gave birth to a baby who tested positive for opiates and marijuana, according to Kenner Police Lt. Michael Cunningham. At the time, the mom reportedly received counseling and literature about the dangers of using illegal narcotics while pregnant and the dangers of breastfeeding while using drugs.

During the most recent investigation, Detective Peter Foltz also obtained text messages from the mom that referenced her use of crystal meth.

Froeba was charged with second-degree murder, but those charges were later downgraded to manslaughter as part of a plea deal after she pleaded guilty in 2021.

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