Mother Charged with Homicide After 3-Year-Old Dies from Scalding Burns

Miamistandard– Following an inquiry into the death of a three-year-old boy who died after being scalded by hot water at home, an Ohio lady has been indicted.
Laronda Mims, 45, called 911 at 7:45 a.m. on January 6 to report that her toddler son, Emmanuel, had removed a pot full of hot water from the stove in their apartment. The Columbus Division of Police reported that the youngster was unresponsive after water spilled on him. He was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, where he received lifesaving treatment. Emmanuel was declared dead at 8:18 a.m. after those attempts failed.
The police stated in their report that the situation surrounding the boy’s murder was serious enough to warrant an investigation by the Columbus Police Homicide Unit. According to the Columbus Dispatch, Mims was arrested by the police but was not charged with any crime and was released from custody.
According to court records, Mims was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of child endangerment—one felony and one misdemeanor—and one count of involuntary manslaughter. The same day that the indictment was issued, January 28, a warrant was also issued.
Franklin County Children’s Services was collaborating with the family, according to a report by WSYX, a local ABC affiliate. Latrice Edgington, a neighbor who talked to the station, also stated that she had seen police officers at the apartment “numerous times” prior to the boy’s murder on January 6. According to Edgington, who spoke to WSYX, the family had only moved into the apartment the summer before.
On the morning of Emmanuel’s death, Edgington witnessed first responders carrying him out in order to take him to the hospital. She said to WSYX, “The baby had a little mask on his face…” I was crying just from seeing him like that, all wrapped up in that blanket.
The Franklin County Coroner’s Office is performing an autopsy on Emmanuel to find out the specific cause and manner of his death. According to The Columbus Dispatch, it has not been finished yet.