MO - 1-month-old girl dies when mother, Mariah Thomas, allegedly places her in oven instead of crib, mom charged - Kansas City, 9 Feb 2024

[KooshBall]

The mother posted about getting drunk for her birthday, she knows you don't put a baby in an oven imo.

 

[SMK777]

The mother posted about getting drunk for her birthday, she knows you don't put a baby in an oven imo.

Could getting drunk mixed with meds, or withdrawing from meds, cause psychosis?

 

[Knox]

Could getting drunk mixed with meds, or withdrawing from meds, cause psychosis?

Good question. But she was aware enough to call her Dad and say he needed to come home, something was wrong with the baby. Unless you can go in/out of psychosis quickly?

 

[cujenn81]

I see it, too. When i read the heading, my first thought was the obvious. But having seen her photos, i wonder if it was her first child. Could it be so that chronic insomnia triggered some kind of delirium?

That thought crossed my mind too but only for a split second. I have severe ADHD, and there have been times when I’ve been so tired that I’ve put my laundry in the microwave instead of the washing machine. (Bizarre, I know!) BUT laundry is far from my child, and microwave doors open in a similar fashion as washing machines. Although it freaked me out at the time, I can kinda see how my exhausted brain maybe mixed up the two when I wasn’t really focused on what I was doing. That said—at no point would you place a baby in anything resembling an oven when putting them down for a nap. So, a similar logic wouldn’t apply here.

ETA: I wanted to clarify that I never turned on the microwave either. My brain eventually kicked in and said what you doing before I even closed the door.

 

[SMK777]

Good question. But she was aware enough to call her Dad and say he needed to come home, something was wrong with the baby. Unless you can go in/out of psychosis quickly?

I guess it depends on how much time had passed when she called him.
[ It’s just horrifying to think of a baby in a hot oven. ]

 

[Knox]

That thought crossed my mind too but only for a split second. I have severe ADHD, and there have been times when I’ve been so tired that I’ve put my laundry in the microwave instead of the washing machine. (Bizarre, I know!) BUT laundry is far from my child, and microwave doors open in a similar fashion as washing machines. Although it freaked me out at the time, I can kinda see how my exhausted brain maybe mixed up the two when I wasn’t really focused on what I was doing. That said—at no point would you place a baby in anything resembling an oven when putting them down for a nap. So, a similar logic wouldn’t apply here.

ETA: I wanted to clarify that I never turned on the microwave either. My brain eventually kicked in and said what you doing before I even closed the door.

So now I’m thinking how she avoided burning herself when she put the baby in the oven? It’s not like inserting an object that’s on a sheet tray or a casserole dish. Someone else mentioned the rack placement, which even complicates things more.

If the oven wasn’t yet on, then afterwards she turned it on … that doesn’t seem like placing her in the crib anyway you look at it, seems to be some intentionality.

 

[SMK777]

So now I’m thinking how she avoided burning herself when she put the baby in the oven? It’s not like inserting an object that’s on a sheet tray or a casserole dish. Someone else mentioned the rack placement, which even complicates things more.

If the oven wasn’t yet on, then afterwards she turned it on … that doesn’t seem like placing her in the crib anyway you look at it, seems to be some intentionality.

The only other thought could be that she deliberately did it to warm the baby up, leaving the oven door wide open, and thinking with her cognitive impairment and perhaps being partly drunk that it would be a kind thing to do for a brief time.

But she underestimated the heat and temperature, and perhaps passed out from drinking [it occurred on her birthday when she planned to get drunk] and came to see she’d made a horrible mistake, but didn’t want to admit that it had been deliberately done. Just speculation of course.

 

[Sjöberg]

Could getting drunk mixed with meds, or withdrawing from meds, cause psychosis?

ATM, I personally am leaning towards a psychosis case.
Girl has either some form of schizophrenia, manic psychosis, cannabis-induced psyhcosis or similar. Goes off meds like they very often do, actually this might be in connection to the pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding even. Or maybe just gets a post-partum psychosis.
Then she has a birthday, has some alcohol and/or cannabis. Gets a full blown episode and that causes the nonsensical actions she took. It is not uncommon for first symptoms to go somewhat unnoticed, especially if she lived only with an older male who was working full-time and might have not even seen her after the celebrations.

I've seen several people like that and honestly, it makes sense to me. The timing especially stands out, right after a birthday.
She might have even been un-/under/mis-diagnosed before that and therefore psychosis risk unforseen (if she has any intellectual disability for example, or if she has been diagnosed only based on her negative symptoms as just depressed, or even misdiagnosed as some ADHD or similar).

 

[SMK777]

ATM, I personally am leaning towards a psychosis case.
Girl has either some form of schizophrenia, manic psychosis, cannabis-induced psyhcosis or similar. Goes off meds like they very often do, actually this might be in connection to the pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding even. Or maybe just gets a post-partum psychosis.
Then she has a birthday, has some alcohol and/or cannabis. Gets a full blown episode and that causes the nonsensical actions she took. It is not uncommon for first symptoms to go somewhat unnoticed, especially if she lived only with an older male who was working full-time and might have not even seen her after the celebrations.

I've seen several people like that and honestly, it makes sense to me. The timing especially stands out, right after a birthday.
She might have even been un-/under/mis-diagnosed before that and therefore psychosis risk unforseen (if she has any intellectual disability for example, or if she has been diagnosed only based on her negative symptoms as just depressed, or even misdiagnosed as some ADHD or similar).

I think all of that makes a great deal of sense.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I will be SO ANGRY if it turns out she is disabled and is punished and whoever this guy is just gets away with being POSSIBLY a deadbeat dad and POSSIBLY a statutory rapist or violent rapist

IF she is found to be mentally handicapped the baby's DNA should be added to criminal and public databases until he is found IN MY OPINION

Frankly I think he should be found through DNA even if she's fine and did it on purpose
As you say Za'Riah was his responsibility too

I'm genuinely curious and not being antagonistic or argumentative. Do you feel the same towards the father of the toddler that the small town Georgia Beauty Queen is charged with murdering? In that case, the father left the toddler in the care of his 18 year-old gf, in her dorm room.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

ATM, I personally am leaning towards a psychosis case.
Girl has either some form of schizophrenia, manic psychosis, cannabis-induced psyhcosis or similar. Goes off meds like they very often do, actually this might be in connection to the pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding even. Or maybe just gets a post-partum psychosis.
Then she has a birthday, has some alcohol and/or cannabis. Gets a full blown episode and that causes the nonsensical actions she took. It is not uncommon for first symptoms to go somewhat unnoticed, especially if she lived only with an older male who was working full-time and might have not even seen her after the celebrations.

I've seen several people like that and honestly, it makes sense to me. The timing especially stands out, right after a birthday.
She might have even been un-/under/mis-diagnosed before that and therefore psychosis risk unforseen (if she has any intellectual disability for example, or if she has been diagnosed only based on her negative symptoms as just depressed, or even misdiagnosed as some ADHD or similar).

It could also have been caused by pot dipped in or laced with something. When it's dipped, I've seen a couple documentaries, CRAZY psychotic episodes. One person went from completely coherent to rolling around in the middle of the street in just a few minutes time.

 

[SMK777]

It could also have been caused by pot dipped in or laced with something. When it's dipped, I've seen a couple documentaries, CRAZY psychotic episodes. One person went from completely coherent to rolling around in the middle of the street in just a few minutes time.

That would explain a lot, definitely.

 

[c@tw0man]

Snipped by me.

I'm confused, Grandfather found baby in the crib, yet officers say baby was in a car seat??

Tampering with evidence would be my guess.

 

[shetalksinstereo]

Tampering with evidence would be my guess.

I don't think that the grandfather was consciously tampering with the evidence, if he was the one who moved the child. I would think that he was just in an emergency situation, trying to do whatever he could to save the child. And, possibly the same with the mother? I don't think she was in her right mind tbh. MOO

 

[SMK777]

I don't think that the grandfather was consciously tampering with the evidence, if he was the one who moved the child. I would think that he was just in an emergency situation, trying to do whatever he could to save the child. And, possibly the same with the mother? I don't think she was in her right mind tbh. MOO

It’s a horrible shame that this happened. Baby, mom, grandfather all destroyed.

The moral of the story is not to use substances when caring for a baby. Especially when you have impairments which make you especially vulnerable. Horrific life-changing and life-destroying event that should have been avoided by all means necessary.

 

[tlcya]

Snipped by me.

I'm confused, Grandfather found baby in the crib, yet officers say baby was in a car seat??

I wonder if baby was in car seat which was in the crib? might account for the discrepancy?

 

[Goecke]

Here's another baby-in-oven/microwave case that hasn't been mentioned before. The defense was that the mom (who had a known history of seizures) put the baby in the microwave during a seizure where she had no control and no memory of what she did. But the mom also lied about what happened, claiming she had a seizure and dropped the baby on a space heater which caused her burns. She was convicted of murder but that was overturned since it was revelaed she didn't get a fair trial- Couldn't find anything on if she was/is going to be retried.

Murder Conviction Reversed for Woman Who Killed Her Infant in Microwave | Law Commentary

The heartbreaking story of a woman who killed her six-week-old daughter by putting her in a microwave oven took a new twist when a California Court of Appeal reversed her conviction due to the improper admission of medical evidence to explain her tragic actions. Was defendant Ka Yang’s behavior...

www.lawcommentary.com

IMO, I doubt MT intended to murder Zariah- I assume this is a case of severe mental illness/disability (which there seems to be some evidence pointing towards) or postpartum psychosis.
Playing devil's advocate here, but it's also possible that MT was getting ready to cook something/the oven was already preheated when Zariah was placed inside instead of Zariah being put in the oven first and then turning it on.

 

[Knox]

I wonder if baby was in car seat which was in the crib? might account for the discrepancy?

That's what I thought also.

 

[Knox]

Here's another baby-in-oven/microwave case that hasn't been mentioned before. The defense was that the mom (who had a known history of seizures) put the baby in the microwave during a seizure where she had no control and no memory of what she did. But the mom also lied about what happened, claiming she had a seizure and dropped the baby on a space heater which caused her burns. She was convicted of murder but that was overturned since it was revelaed she didn't get a fair trial- Couldn't find anything on if she was/is going to be retried.

Murder Conviction Reversed for Woman Who Killed Her Infant in Microwave | Law Commentary

The heartbreaking story of a woman who killed her six-week-old daughter by putting her in a microwave oven took a new twist when a California Court of Appeal reversed her conviction due to the improper admission of medical evidence to explain her tragic actions. Was defendant Ka Yang’s behavior...

www.lawcommentary.com

IMO, I doubt MT intended to murder Zariah- I assume this is a case of severe mental illness/disability (which there seems to be some evidence pointing towards) or postpartum psychosis.
Playing devil's advocate here, but it's also possible that MT was getting ready to cook something/the oven was already preheated when Zariah was placed inside instead of Zariah being put in the oven first and then turning it on.

If the oven was already preheated - how would she avoid burning herself? A baby is not supine, but floppy. It's not like shoving a casserole dish into the oven. I'm sorry to be so graphic, it's truly horrific to work through the mechanics of this subject.

 

[ifindedout]

Here's another baby-in-oven/microwave case that hasn't been mentioned before. The defense was that the mom (who had a known history of seizures) put the baby in the microwave during a seizure where she had no control and no memory of what she did. But the mom also lied about what happened, claiming she had a seizure and dropped the baby on a space heater which caused her burns. She was convicted of murder but that was overturned since it was revelaed she didn't get a fair trial- Couldn't find anything on if she was/is going to be retried.

Murder Conviction Reversed for Woman Who Killed Her Infant in Microwave | Law Commentary

The heartbreaking story of a woman who killed her six-week-old daughter by putting her in a microwave oven took a new twist when a California Court of Appeal reversed her conviction due to the improper admission of medical evidence to explain her tragic actions. Was defendant Ka Yang’s behavior...

www.lawcommentary.com

I found a thread for that case soon after you posted.

CONVICTION OVERTURNED - CA - Mirabelle Thao-Lo, 7 wks, killed in microwave oven, Sacramento, 17 March 2011

Another horrific murder by microwave. Fly high sweet little Mirabelle. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gd2ln9vUU9ZCZh98jCQVOBKEY9nw?docId=bc47cb68035a49be861e6eee4d7096bf Calif. mom arrested after baby dies in microwave "Sacramento police arrested a 29-year-old mother...

www.websleuths.com

IMO, I doubt MT intended to murder Zariah- I assume this is a case of severe mental illness/disability (which there seems to be some evidence pointing towards) or postpartum psychosis.
Playing devil's advocate here, but it's also possible that MT was getting ready to cook something/the oven was already preheated when Zariah was placed inside instead of Zariah being put in the oven first and then turning it on.

But how did MT not hear Z screaming in pain? Was she so far out of it? Or, heaven forbid, was the baby unconscious or dead when placed in the oven?