An Ohio woman and her boyfriend have been arrested after a 3-year-old child was found critically injured at an Airbnb in Henry County, according to court documents and reporting by the Courier-Times.
Kami Nelson, 23, of East Canton, Ohio, was arrested March 25. Lee O’Donnell, 25, of Richmond, Indiana, was taken into custody March 27. Both are charged in Henry Circuit Court with neglect of a dependent resulting in catastrophic injury, a Level 1 felony, along with additional felony and misdemeanor charges.
Authorities said Nelson is the child’s mother, while O’Donnell is her boyfriend and not the child’s biological father.
Police and emergency responders were called shortly after 5:30 a.m. March 25 to an Airbnb in New Castle for a report of an unresponsive child. Officers arrived to find the child lying naked on a bedroom floor and without a detectable pulse, according to a probable cause affidavit. CPR was initiated before the child was transported to a local hospital and later airlifted to Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis.
Medical personnel described the child as critically ill, suffering from severe abdominal trauma, lacerations to the intestines and colon, and acute kidney injury. Doctors said the injuries required emergency surgery and would likely have been fatal without immediate treatment. The child also showed extensive bruising and possible facial fractures.
According to investigators, medical professionals found no evidence of an underlying condition that could explain the injuries and determined they were consistent with non-accidental trauma.
During interviews with police, Nelson and O’Donnell gave differing accounts of what happened.
Nelson told investigators the child had been sick and vomiting in the days leading up to the incident. She said O’Donnell helped care for the child the night before and later alerted her that the child was not breathing. Nelson also claimed the child bruised easily and had been sleepwalking, which she believed could explain the injuries. She told officers she had considered taking the child to the hospital but had not done so due to a recent job change and lack of health insurance.
In a later interview, Nelson said she believed O’Donnell may have caused the injuries and accused him of trying to protect himself.
O’Donnell told police he found the child in a bathroom around 5 a.m., lying on a towel near a bathtub that contained water. He said the child was wheezing and struggling to breathe before he called 911.
He also alleged that Nelson had been physically abusive toward the child, claiming she frequently struck or disciplined the child aggressively.
Investigators noted inconsistencies in both accounts. O’Donnell later failed to appear for a scheduled polygraph examination and was located by authorities on Interstate 70 in Wayne County, where he was taken into custody.
Police also reported finding drug paraphernalia at the Airbnb.
As of March 30, both Nelson and O’Donnell remained jailed in Henry County on bonds totaling more than $200,000 each. Initial hearings were scheduled for March 31.
The child remains hospitalized in critical condition with life-threatening injuries.
