LA - 7-year old quadriplegic boy dies after being left at home for hours - Metairie, April 21, 2025

[Clearsky]

Metairie mom booked with negligent homicide in quadriplegic 7-year-old son's death

Karla Padilla Pavon was arrested after authorities say her 7-year-old son died while he was home alone for several hours in Metairie.

www.nola.com

Karla Padilla Pavon, 22, and Hovet Vela Espinoza, 48, were booked with negligent homicide, said Sgt. Brandon Veal, spokesperson for the department.

 

[nao]

Moo... guessing he is not father of deceased child. She is 22 and he is 48.

 

[tlcya]

But on Saturday, Karla Padilla and Vela left the boy home alone inside their residence in the 7200 block of Mistletoe Street in Metairie for at least three hours, Veal said.
Metairie mom booked with negligent homicide in quadriplegic 7-year-old son's death

According to investigators, the child required specialized care and continuous supervision. Detectives say Padilla-Pavon and her boyfriend, Vela-Espinoza, left the child alone for several hours. When they returned home, they delayed calling 911, despite the child’s condition.
Two arrested for negligent homicide after child found dead in Metairie home, JPSO says

 

[nao]

Moo..so who chose the leave him alone...he will be fine decicion

 

[tlcya]

Moo..so who chose the leave him alone...he will be fine decicion

well, ultimately since the two adults were mom and mom's boyfriend I'm holding mom responsible. She was little guy's custodial parent and she admits she chose to leave him alone for up to 3 hours. It isn't clear to me if the boyfriend also lives in that household or not, if he does then he is also responsible. JMO

 

[nao]

Moo...the way I see abuse is...no abuse...second person joins house....then there is abuse. Abuse is second person....moo

 

[Lucy6226]

Mum is 22 with a 7yr old, meaning she was 15 when she had him. Do we know for sure the boyfriend isn't the father?

No excuse for leaving a severely disabled child home alone, hell I wouldn't leave a healthy 7yr old home alone! I'm just curious about the circumstances

 

[tlcya]

Mum is 22 with a 7yr old, meaning she was 15 when she had him. Do we know for sure the boyfriend isn't the father?

No excuse for leaving a severely disabled child home alone, hell I wouldn't leave a healthy 7yr old home alone! I'm just curious about the circumstances

good point, we do not know if boyfriend is the father or not, I am guessing not or he would be described as such in the articles but that is just my guess.

Moo...the way I see abuse is...no abuse...second person joins house....then there is abuse. Abuse is second person....moo

perhaps. Or perhaps she has been neglectful in the past but it never resulted in consequences. We have no idea if she has decided in the past to leave her disabled child unsupervised and this was just the time where something bad finally happened. No idea if the boyfriend resides there and no idea if so, for how long.

 

[nao]

good point, we do not know if boyfriend is the father or not, I am guessing not or he would be described as such in the articles but that is just my guess.


perhaps. Or perhaps she has been neglectful in the past but it never resulted in consequences. We have no idea if she has decided in the past to leave her disabled child unsupervised and this was just the time where something bad finally happened. No idea if the boyfriend resides there and no idea if so, for how long.

Moo.. but that must be taken into consideration.

 

[Twick]

What social supports did this family have? The child sounds awfully fragile to be cared for by an extremely young mother and a maybe father/maybe old guy with a yen for younger women.

 

[sunspun]

What was cause of death?

 

[Goecke]

What was cause of death?

"He died of apparent natural causes related to his medical conditions, the coroner's office said."

Metairie mom booked with negligent homicide in quadriplegic 7-year-old son's death

Karla Padilla Pavon was arrested after authorities say her 7-year-old son died while he was home alone for several hours in Metairie.

www.nola.com

Sounds like the cause was natural, but the manner was homicide- He probably suffered a fatal medical event while left alone.
The article also names the little boy as Cristian Rodriguez Padilla.

 

[Aegon_the_Conqueror]

"He died of apparent natural causes related to his medical conditions, the coroner's office said."

Metairie mom booked with negligent homicide in quadriplegic 7-year-old son's death

Karla Padilla Pavon was arrested after authorities say her 7-year-old son died while he was home alone for several hours in Metairie.

www.nola.com

Sounds like the cause was natural, but the manner was homicide- He probably suffered a fatal medical event while left alone.
The article also names the little boy as Cristian Rodriguez Padilla.

Maybe it was something treatable had someone been there. It'll surely give their defense something to work with.

 

[Kittypoo]

Mum is 22 with a 7yr old, meaning she was 15 when she had him. Do we know for sure the boyfriend isn't the father?

No excuse for leaving a severely disabled child home alone, hell I wouldn't leave a healthy 7yr old home alone! I'm just curious about the circumstances

I thought this meaning she could even have been 14 when pregnant. Could this guy be her father judging by the age.? Unfortunately incest did cross my mind resulting in severely disabled child
JMO

 

[Goecke]

Given everyone's last names, I doubt HVE is the father of Cristian or Karla.
Cristian had cerebral palsy, which is usually not genetic, it is caused by brain damage before or immediately after birth. I can't find anything specifically saying younger moms have a higher risk of having kids with cerebral palsy, but a pregnant 14/15 year old would be considered a high risk pregnancy. This means high risk of complications in general. These complications can lead to cerebral palsy: Risk Factors for Cerebral Palsy

That being said, we don't know the situation with Cristian's father. It's highly likely that KPP was taken advantage of by an older man, but until we know for sure that's just speculation.