LA - Louisa, 5 mos, homicide, abusive head trauma, dad claims 911 CPR rib fractures, atty claims not guilty, Orleans Parish, 28 Feb 2023 *arrest*

imstilla.grandma

Believer of Miracles
Joined
Jul 7, 2018
Messages
35,964
Reaction score
238,245
According to court records, Christopher Strickland was arrested Thursday and faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree child cruelty to juveniles in connection with the death of his infant daughter Louisa.

Louisa, who was five months old, died March 2 at Children's Hospital, according to the Orleans Parish coroner's report.

Court records show that Christopher brought Louisa to Children's Hospital on Feb. 28 by ambulance due to her being unresponsive.

Christopher told doctors that he had put her in her room and left for five to ten minutes to make a bottle and check on his dogs. He said when he returned, she was barely breathing.

According to the court documents, Christopher admitted to "violently shaking" the child to try to revive her and was told to give her CPR through a 911 call.

He claimed to doctors that during the CPR he heard "crunching sounds" and that the baby began aspirating on formula.

Louisa was then intubated once she arrived to the hospital.

Court records show a PICU social worker contacted police regarding the child's injuries. She reported that the child had rib fractures and a head injury that "likened to a car accident, high altitude fall, head crush injury, or forceful shaking."

A forensic medical report of Louisa showed that her rib fractures were anywhere from three to four weeks old, and that her head injuries lead to her death.

The coroner officially ruled her death as complications from abusive head trauma caused from shaking in a report that police received on June 16. The manner of death was ruled a homicide.

Christopher and his wife Tess were featured in a WDSU Investigates piece in 2021 where they shared their previous experience with the Department of Children and Family Services and its child abuse registry.

Both Christopher and Tess discussed how abuse claims were made against them in a case involving their first-born son Rivers during a pediatric appointment.

In that case, a judge found there was not sufficient evidence of child abuse and ordered their son Rivers be returned to them. They were still placed on the child abuse registry.

Strickland's bond was set at $150,000 on the second-degree murder charge and $25,000 on the second-degree cruelty to juvenile charge.

The Strickland's attorney, Sarah Chervinsky, issued the following statement regarding the accusations:

"Any parent who has lost a child knows the depth of grief the Stricklands are suffering. Their pain has been compounded by the wrongful accusation that Chris is responsible for his daughter's death.

"Chris has not been formally charged with any crime at this point. The District Attorney must begin their process of thoroughly reviewing all the circumstances in this case, and we are confident if they conduct a complete and fair investigation, the evidence will prove that Chris is innocent."
 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
91
Guests online
1,659
Total visitors
1,750

Forum statistics

Threads
623,111
Messages
18,462,581
Members
240,289
Latest member
Steph1488
Back
Top