An Austin woman is facing charges after police say she burned her baby in a sink full of hot water.
On February 11, police say 22-year-old Amairani Jatsiri Gonzalez-Santamaria called 911 to report her 2-month-old son was in distress and not breathing. When first responders arrived at the home, they immediately transported the baby boy........Doctors then transported the baby by STARFlight to the burn unit at University Hospital in San Antonio.
Doctors treated him for burns to 26.5% of his back, neck, buttocks, and the sides of his arms and legs. The baby also had fractures in both legs. A pediatric nurse practitioner described the baby's burns as "near fatal."
While her son was undergoing treatment, Gonzalez-Santamaria agreed to a police interview at Dell Children's Hospital. She said she put the baby in the sink for a bath while her 2-year-old daughter was playing on a slide in the living room. When her daughter fell off the slide, she ran to her aid and failed to turn off the hot water knob completely. When she returned 5 to 8 minutes later, the baby was surrounded by hot water.
In April, police interviewed Gonzalez-Santamaria again. She told detectives she was experiencing a lack of sleep and felt angry and exhausted as a parent and that she was resentful she had no help with the children. Police say she also blamed herself for not seeking help, and confessed she felt angry that the baby's father treated her better when they found out she was having a boy.
Gonzalez-Santamaria admitted a week before the victim was burned, she punched him in the stomach during a diaper change. She said she was shocked by her actions, and gave the baby to his father for the rest of the night.
Police say she also admitted on the same day the victim was burned, she was changing his diaper and she pulled a little too hard on his legs. She said she punched him in the stomach, before pulling his legs towards her.
Gonzalez-Santamaria told police when the baby was crying in the sink, she could hear him, but she "didn't care."
According to police, she said "I tried to close the water, but I didn't pay too much attention because I felt bad like I didn't want to kill him, but I just didn't care. I was angry," according to court documents.