A mother in Florida has pleaded guilty after she allegedly watched her baby slowly asphyxiate.
Bianca R. Desouza has pleaded guilty to one count each of aggravated manslaughter of a child and neglect of a child causing great bodily harm, according to Palm Beach County court records viewed by Law&Crime.
The incident took place on May 2, 2022, according to the outlet. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and Fire Rescue team members responded to an emergency call around 4:56 p.m. regarding an unresponsive infant at a home in West Boca Raton, Florida.
The caller who reported the incident identified herself as the infant’s grandmother. She explained that she had walked into her daughter’s room that day and noticed the baby wasn’t breathing, according to the report.
The child was rushed to West Boca Medical Center, and he was declared dead shortly after his arrival.
The defendant – who was 19 years old at the time of the incident – told investigators that she gave birth to the child in her bed and held him until he stopped crying, according to Law&Crime. She then left the baby unattended to take a shower before she went to rest in her mother’s bed.
“She said the birth happened quickly, and [she] did not know [he] was dead until her mom came in,” a probable cause affidavit stated.
The document stated that Desouza, now 23, was scheduled to have the child’s birth induced one day later, while it also noted that she and her husband were considering putting the baby up for adoption.
Desouza was checked into the Fort Lauderdale Behavioral Health Center after the baby’s birth and death. At the time, she told the staff that she had a history of self-harm and severe depression, per the charging document. Additionally, authorities said that Desouza said she stopped taking her prescribed Lexapro two weeks before the baby’s death.
The defendant’s mother told investigators that Desouza was diagnosed with psychosis and bipolar disorder, adding that she might have done “something to the baby” and potentially “had some sort of psychotic break.”
Following her release from the psychiatric hospital on May 11, 2022, Desouza spoke to investigators about the incident.
She said she was “really confused” when she suddenly went into labor and she “didn’t know what to do” once he was born. “I just didn’t do anything and I’m so mad,” she said, per Law&Crime. “It was like my body stopped working.”
When asked if she wished she had done anything differently, Desouza told authorities she wished she “would have called for help.”
“I asked how long he cried for, she said, not long,” the affidavit stated. “I asked what made him stop crying and she recalled she fell asleep and when she woke up, he wasn’t crying. She thought he was sleeping. According to [Desouza], he was lying on his left side. She didn’t put him on his side because she was afraid to touch him.”
While Desouza admitted she’s not sure she knows what happened to the baby, she insisted she “would never hurt him.”
The Palm Beach County medical examiner determined that the child’s cause of death was asphyxia, while the cause of injury was “chest compression.”
The pathologist added that the child was born through the leg hole of boxer shorts Desouza was wearing at the time of the birth, which likely pressed his face against her thigh.
“[Desouza] did not attempt to move herself, remove clothing, reposition the baby, pick up, comfort, seek medical attention, or otherwise care for the child,” the charging document stated, per the outlet. “[She] did not attempt to create an environment where the neonate could breathe without restriction during the birth process and failed to ensure his wellbeing after being born.”
Desouza was arrested and charged in December 2023. She is scheduled to be sentenced on January 29, 2026.
The Palm Beach County Court did not immediately respond to Luxury Handbag Shopping’s request for comment.
