A 3-year-old boy who spent at least 30 minutes at the bottom of an Illinois lake is not expected to survive and authorities claim it was his own aunt who threw him into the water.
A judge denied the bail request of Victoria Moreno on Wednesday. The 34-year old Moreno has been formally charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery to a child.
During the press release on the case, the victim, who has not been identified, was at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, still receiving medical care.
During the court proceedings on Wednesday, Moreno was accused by Assistant State’s Attorney Lorraine Scaduto of shoving her nephew into the waters of Lake Michigan on Monday.
Scaduto told the court Moreno took the keys to a relative’s car, and drove with the toddler from Des Plains to Navy Pier, a Chicago destination that attracts scores of tourists.
Moreno threw the boy into the lake before taking a seat on the edge of the pier, where she watched as he slowly sank out of view.
Police were called to the scene, divers were summoned to scour the bottom of the lake in search of the boy. They surfaced with him after a 30 minute search.
The child was rushed to the hospital in cardiac arrest.
“The victim is suffering from a swollen brain and bleeding in his lungs. He has experienced multiple seizures and multiple events of cardiac arrest since being pulled from the water. Not once during any of these events did the defendant scream for help, call for help, ask for help or try herself to help,” Scaduto said Wednesday. “When the police arrived, the defendant pretended not to know anything about the child.”
In fact, the aunt waited until the area was clear of people before grabbing the boy up and throwing him into the lake.
Moreno was arrested at the scene. She is due back in court on Sept. 30, at which time she’ll be asked to enter pleas.
Patrick Shine, Moreno’s public defender, argued in court Wednesday his client suffers from mental issues and has never done anything like this before.
“I believe that something happened … inside of her,” Shine said. “I don’t think anyone can say what my client was thinking. This incident is an anomaly in her background.”
It’ll probably come out that she’s schizophrenic. Not that I believe mental illness should matter since many people with the same illness don’t cause harm to people, and the ones that do are a threat to society regardless.
There seems to be an unusually high rate of schizophrenia in the Hispanic community.
Or maybe these type of incidents just get more attention than when it happens with other minorities, or “minority” I should say.
WHY IS THAT WHEN SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAPPENS THE FIRST THING OUT PEOPLE MOUTH HAS TO DO WITH THEIR RACE. WELL LET ME SCHOOL YOU IT IS NOT ONLY THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY THAT IS DEALING WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA IT IS ALL RACES SO STOP JUDGING PEOPLE ON THIER SKIN COLOR, WHAT SHE DID WAS A DISGRACE REGARDLESS OF COLOR AND SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE TO HER WHAT SHE DID TO HER NEPHEW
F*ck her. No matter her reason, she has no place in society. Handcuff her, throw her in the lake and watch her sink!
Exactly
Completely agree.
I like your solution!!!!!! This is what she deserves!!!!!!!!!!!
Mike Mac
Can I shoot her with a spear gun a couple times to study penetration levels before ya toss her in?
Eye for an eye
I couldn’t agree more. She is a waste and should be thrown away with the other trash!
Im tired of these “Insane” pleas. Every Criminal is Fcukin insane. Thats what makes them criminals
Right?!! Lock her up!! I don’t care why she did it!! Lock her ass up and throw away the key!!
Better yet, tie a millstone around her neck, dump her into a deep lake. Eye for an eye
Jesus said, “turn the other cheek.”
I can’t Lord.
I’m trying to understand why anyone that observed this didn’t jump in to save the child. He couldn’t have sunk so quickly that no one saw him. I read that an observer said he was floating on his back for some period of time. So sad.