A mother in New Roads was arrested in connection with the death of her infant son on Monday.
Ke'iondra Butler, 19, was booked into the Point Coupee Parish Detention Center on one count each of second-degree murder and obstruction of justice.
Officers with the New Roads Police Department responded Monday morning to a medical call about an unresponsive infant at a residence on Pennsylvania Street.
According to Pointe Coupee Parish District Attorney Tony Clayton, the baby had blood around his mouth and nostrils at the time of death.
The infant was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Clayton said Butler's story about the circumstances of her child's death was inconsistent in her conversations with police. In addition to the bleeding, older welts could be seen on the child's skin, Clayton said.
An autopsy is currently underway. Clayton said he is looking for signs of other abuse from the autopsy results, like possible blunt force trauma to the head or malnutrition.
"Cases like these are tough," he said. To prove that any negligent care is worthy of a homicide charge, prosecutors would have to show that incidents of violence led causally to the child's death. A lesser charge of criminal negligence is possible if that level isn't reached.
Butler has another 2-year-old child, who has been transferred into the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services.