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The insane mind of Supa Mom...i'm weird

Children are Dying in New Orleans
Jul 23, 2009 at 10:03 AM
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- lah_arcana
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I have been really struggling with a lot of things that happen in my city. I live in New Orleans. There is a lot of poverty in this post-katrina city. But still.... Still, i hear every breath my children make. Where was the baby monitor? Couldn't they have gotten one from a second hand store or a consignment shop? I know when times are tough i frequent a number of consignmnet shops. Specifically one that is not more than 2 miles away from this family's residence. How could they not hear this baby scream? I call bull shit on the whole thing. I do feel bad for the loss of their child but they had to be on drugs or drunk not to hear a 3 month old baby cry when they attack started... That's the only thing i can fathom. I know i seem heartless but i am exhausted and depressed at the constant tragedy in New Orleans and the surrounding areas. A baby dies because it wasn't in a car seat, a mother throws her baby in the lake, or a mother and father let their two year old pick up a bag of blow off the coffee table and ingest it... i am so disturbed by this. thoughts?

NEW ORLEANS METRO REAL-TIME NEWS

Breaking Local News from New Orleans, Louisiana

Rat bites caused bleeding that killed baby, coroner says

by Allen Powell II, The Times-Picayune
Thursday July 23, 2009, 5:58 AM

SUSAN POAG / THE TIMES-PICAYUNECasey Laine and Robby Hill quickly exit to a waiting car after a hearing Wednesday, July 22, 2009 at Rivarde Juvenile Justice Center in Gretna to determine custody of their 14 month old son R.J.The couple's three month old daughter Natalie Hill was discovered dead, covered with rat bites July 16, 2009 at their home in Westwego.

The 3-month-old girl found dead in her Westwego home last week died from blood loss due to the numerous rat bites she suffered, the Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office announced Wednesday.

In a one-sentence press release, Coroner Robert Treuting listed the cause of Natalie Hill's death as "exsanguination due to destruction of soft tissue secondary to murine activity." That means the baby died from blood loss because of the rat bites.

The infant was found covered with "hundreds" of rat bites and lying in a pool of blood in her crib in the family's Central Avenue home July 16.

The coroner's office would not discuss whether the baby bled for an extended period of time, or whether an artery was struck causing massive bleeding immediately. Authorities said it appeared that rats had gnawed on Natalie's nose and right leg.

The news came as the infant's parents, Robby Hill and Casey Laine, waited at the Jefferson Parish Juvenile Justice Center in Gretna to find out if their 14-month old son would be released from state custody.

After hours of discussion, hearing officer Salvador Mule decided Wednesday to delay a decision on whether the boy should be placed with the couple or their relatives and friends. The case will resume Tuesday, and the boy will remain in state custody while officials conduct site visits at relatives' homes to determine whether they are suitable.

Laine and Hill lost custody of the boy after Natalie died. The couple has said that they were aware of rat problem around the home, and heard rats scratching in the walls of the house. However, Laine has said that they never saw the rats inside the building, and several family friends agreed.

A family friend said that the judge intimated that he would consider the coroner's report when he decided whether to return the boy to his parents.

The news about Natalie's death "devastated" family members who once again praised Hill and Laine as "good parents" and cast blame on the couple's landlord Charles Dufrene.

"They were good parents," said Lisa Lee Normand, Casey Laine's mother. "This is all the landlord's fault...

"He let them children move in that house knowing the kind of danger they were in."

Normand repeated accusations that Dufrene, who is Robby Hill's stepfather, received federal assistance to repair the house, but refused to spend that money on fixing the house and helping the couple. Dufrene was at the courthouse Wednesday with the family, but could not be reached for comment. Several family members said the mood was very tense between Dufrene and the rest of the family once the coroner's report was released.

"I'll never forgive that man ever," Normand said.

Media members were not allowed to interview the family inside of the building or sit outside the courtroom where the hearing was held. Hill and Laine left the building shortly after it closed at 4:30 p.m. but declined to comment on the hearing or on the coroner's report before leaving in a waiting car.

The family is trying to band together to provide support for the couple and to provide a safe place for their son to return to, said Ryan Laine, Casey Laine's brother. Roughly a dozen family members and friends were on hand at the courthouse to serve as character witnesses for the couple. Laine said his sister has been treated unfairly, and emphasized that she did everything she could for her daughter and son.

"This is devastation," he said. "Nobody thought that this would happen like that...I want everybody to know she is a good mother."

Westwego Police Chief Dwayne Munch said the coroner's report is just another piece of information for his department to consider as it continues its investigation into Hill's death. Munch would not say whether the couple could face any criminal charges, but did emphasize that his department is considering a wide array of options.

"Everything is on the table. I don't want to speculate, but everything is on the table," Munch said.

The family is planning to hold funeral services for Natalie Hill on Thursday from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Mothe Funeral Home on Lapalco Boulevard.

See earlier NOLA.com stories and video on the Natalie Hill case