Brooklyn Baby Dies After Dad Leaves Him By Hot Shower Strapped In Stroller And Covered In Blanket
Mordechai Halpern, a 1-year-old baby from Brooklyn, died after his father put him in the bathroom next to a hot shower in his stroller and covered him with a blanket for several hours.
The Kensington, New York baby allegedly woke up coughing around 3:30 a.m. on Thursday. His unidentified 27-year-old father reportedly gave him a bottle filled with sugar, lemon juice, and water to help his cough.
When Mordechai Halpern’s chronic cough did not alleviate, the father said he put him in the bathroom and used the shower to create steam in an attempt to loosen up the cough. The baby had recently suffered through a case of bronchitis, Pix11 New York News reported.
The Brooklyn baby was strapped into his strolled and covered with the blanket next to the hot shower and left alone behind a closed door, according to New York police report information shared by the Daily Mail. Law enforcement investigators currently do not think the Kensington father was trying to harm his son.
Mordechai Halpern’s father was allegedly trying to create a humidifier by turning the shower water to hot and closing the curtain before putting the baby close by next to the commode. Why the father left the boy alone in the room and went back to sleep and the mother did not come help with the sick baby, remains unclear.
MORDECHAI HALPERN 1YR OLD BROOKLYN BOY>Dies After 27YR OLD Father Left Him IN THE BATHROOM WITH Hot Running Shower https://t.co/4i1vzX0qCq
— ERIC WRIGHT™???????????????? (@therealeric916) September 15, 2017
The Brooklyn father told New York police investigators that he set an alarm for 5 a.m. so he would wake up and go check on his infant son. The baby’s 22-year-old mother, also not yet identified in the press, reportedly went to check on her son and discovered Mordechai unconscious in his stroller.
A Hatzolah ambulance was called and Mordechai Halpern was rushed to the Maimonides Medical Center for emergency treatment. The baby was pronounced dead shortly before 6 a.m. the New York Daily News reported.
The 1-year-old baby’s body temperature rose to 108 degrees before he died. An autopsy report detailing the infant’s cause of death has not yet been released. According to reports by New York police investigators, Mordechai Halpern’s body did not show any signs of trauma.
Child dies after father leaves him near hot shower – Mordechai Halpern’s body temperature had climbed to as muc… https://t.co/D4COq6Dbxi
— Zyite.com (@zyiteblog) September 16, 2017
Susan Necheles, the attorney for the baby’s parents, said the couple is devastated by the sudden death of their infant, according to DNAinfo. Necheles went on to deem the incident a “tragedy” and said the entire family is now in a state of mourning. The baby was buried on Thursday evening.
Children’s services staffers are also looking into the circumstances surrounding Mordechai Halpern’s death. Agency representatives would not divulge if the family had ever before been investigated or had any contact with the child protective services entity.
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