28 year old Ashley Newburn has been ordered to stand trial for the death of her infant child. Fire and rescue personnel were called to Newburn's home on March 15 and found five month Justice Layton unresponsive. She later died in the hospital.
Prosecutors say Newburn was the only person awake when the child went unconscious, but defense attorneys point out there were five people in the apartment at the time.
According to the defense, three adults, including the child’s father, and two children shared a one bedroom apartment in a south-central Omaha complex. One of the children told police the last person they saw next to the baby was the father, John Layton.
Newburn cried at her preliminary hearing Wednesday when prosecutors told the court the infant died from the injuries and that Ashley was the last person with the child.
Ashley’s father and stepmother left the courtroom believing there was not enough evidence to make a case against their daughter, but prosecutors are sure that they’ve charged the right person.
“This child has massive injuries, you know, brain bleed. And mom says she was the one pretty much taking care of the child at the time this happened and the child had just taken the bottle and suddenly just went unconscious. Well, all our experts tell us these are non-accidental trauma. This was intentional abuse,” says Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine.
Newburn is charged with Child Abuse Resulting in Death. If found guilty she could face 20 years to life in prison. She is currently being held on $100,000 bond.