Boy, 1, died in ‘scalding hot bath’ while mum went out with her boyfriend

Samantha Garver and her boyfriend Sergio Mena admitted to second-degree murder and child abuse of her son Henry Wheatley-Brown

A mother who left her one‐year‐old son in a scalding bath while she went out with her boyfriend has been sentenced to more than a decade in prison.

Samantha Garver, 26, and her partner, Sergio Mena, 34, admitted to second‐degree murder and child abuse following the death of her son, Henry Wheatley‐Brown, at their home in Sugarloaf, California, on September 30, 2023.

The toddler died from catastrophic burns after Mena placed him in an excessively hot bath and left the property, allegedly to obtain methamphetamine. Mena received a 21‐year sentence, while Garver was jailed for 14 years, according to the Express US.

Following an investigation, authorities concluded that the young boy had endured ongoing abuse, having suffered second- and third-degree burns across his body, alongside physical bruising and multiple healing fractures in both arms. Child services also concluded, following their own separate inquiry, that the toddler’s death was attributable to “abuse or neglect.”

Upon returning to find the youngster screaming in agony after being “severely burned” in the bath, Mena made no effort whatsoever to ease the child’s suffering, according to the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office.

“Despite Henry’s extensive and life-threatening injuries, neither defendant sought medical care, instead attempting to treat the burns with over-the-counter ointment,” stated the prosecutors.

It was only the following day that the couple alerted authorities to his “shallow breathing”.

Paramedics discovered Henry in a devastating condition, with the district attorney’s office reporting: “Paramedics found Henry without a pulse, ice-cold to the touch and severely dehydrated.”

The district attorney’s office said in a statement: “Although nothing can bring back baby Henry or erase the suffering he endured, today’s sentences deliver justice and ensure these defendants will never again harm a child. The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office will honour Henry’s memory by never forgetting him and by continuing to fight for vulnerable children.”

Years of records catalogue the alleged abuse suffered by the young boy and his three elder siblings, prompting the involvement of the San Bernardino County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) with Garber, according to The Los Angeles Times.

The mother allegedly admitted to DCFS workers that she “felt like putting a pillow over” one of her children to stop their persistent crying, and posted a question on Facebook asking if “duct taping a child’s mouth is abusive.”

The case left investigators divided in their assessments, with some concluding the children faced a “high risk” of abuse while another maintained the children were “safe.”

The child’s own family members appeared to minimise the gravity of the mistreatment occurring inside the home. The boy’s grandmother, Sierra Rivers, appeared to imply that ill-treatment is commonplace, acceptable, and something that can be endured.

“I got abused as a kid, and I got hit as a baby, and I turned out fine,” Rivers told The Los Angeles Times.

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