Mom, whose mental health deteriorated further after she gave birth, claims she believed she was putting her baby down for sIeeping, but put the 1-month-old in hot 0ven by mistake, killing her; indicted

Kansas City, MO – A Missouri woman who prosecutors say killed her child and claimed she mistakenly placed the baby in a kitchen appliance instead of the child’s crib has been indicted, court records say. Last week, the defendant, 26-year-old Marlah, was also charged with involuntary manslaughter in addition to endangering the welfare of a child. The Missouri mother is now facing between 13 and 40 years behind bars if found guilty on both charges, court records say. On Thursday, a grand jury added a count of first-degree involuntary manslaughter in a superseding indictment.

The investigation process began earlier this year after a 911 caller informed the dispatcher about an unresponsive baby. First responders arrived on the scene only to find the 1-month-old child, Zaria, suffering from severe burns all over her body. They pronounced the baby dead at the scene. The responding officers reportedly found the baby in the living room, suffering from severe burns. The baby’s clothes and diaper were completely melted and burned. According to court documents, the woman reportedly refused to speak with authorities, local news outlet KCS reported.

The responding officers also made contact with a family member, who according to prosecutors is the defendant’s father and the victim’s grandparent. The man reportedly told investigators that he left the woman with the baby several hours before. When he left, the woman and the baby were doing all right, the man reportedly told investigators. Several hours later, the woman reportedly called the family member and told him that “something is wrong with the baby” and he needs to come home immediately. When the man arrived home, he reportedly found the child unresponsive and said the home smelled like smoke. According to the family member, the woman reportedly told him that she “thought she put the 1-month-old baby in her crib, but accidentally put her in the oven.”

The defendant alleged she was putting the child down for a nap and mistakenly placed the child in the kitchen appliance instead of the crib, according to the court documents. According to The Daily Beast, the mother has been dealing with mental illnesses since she was a child, and she stopped taking medication for her conditions while pregnant. The defendant’s friend also told the outlet that the mother’s mental health deteriorated further after she gave birth, pointing to posts the woman made on social media in which she claimed that people only cared about her because she had a baby.