John Jefferson
Inset: Leticia A. Rodriguez (Cobb County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The home where Rodriguez was allegedly caught trying to bury her dead newborn (WAGA).
A 17-year-old mother in Georgia previously accused of trying to bury her dead newborn baby in her backyard is facing additional charges after investigators alleged that she killed the infant.
Leticia A. Rodriguez, who was arrested late last month, is now charged with one count of felony murder and one count of aggravated assault with a weapon, authorities announced.
Rodriguez had previously been facing one felony count each of concealing a death, throwing away or abandonment of a dead body, and abuse of a dead body in the death of her young son.
“The ongoing multi-agency investigation has gathered evidence leading to new charges,” the Marietta Police Department said in a Friday news release. “Warrant 24-W-11103 has been secured, charging Leticia Rodriguez with Aggravated Assault Weapon and Felony Murder. Because this is an ongoing, active investigation and there is no danger to the community as relates to this case, we anticipate no further updates. The investigation has been turned over to the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office.”
The Georgia Gazette reported that Rodriguez admitted to investigators that she cut the infant’s throat when she used a “sharp knife” to remove the umbilical cord. A probable cause affidavit obtained by the newspaper reportedly states the teen confessed to police that she “cut out the deceased infant’s heart” using a pocketknife.
As Law&Crime previously reported, the Marietta Police Department at about 3:20 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 24, responded to a residence on Gramling Street regarding a deceased baby and someone digging a hole in their backyard. The details of the alleged crime were provided in a news briefing by Marietta Police Public Information Officer Chuck McPhilamy.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they “discovered the mother of the deceased infant digging a hole in the backyard in an attempt to create that situation,” clarifying that the infant was “never actually buried.”
McPhilamy said that the details included in the probable cause affidavit were “more graphic” than police would say publicly, but provided some details about what officers saw at the scene.
“What I can tell you is that when officers arrived on the scene they did find a body that was obviously recognizable as a newborn infant, that that infant was deceased, that that infant was clearly injured,” he said, adding that the boy “appeared to be a fully formed or full-sized child.”
Police said that Rodriguez had given birth in her home earlier in the day and “had no one of any adult nature or even a peer of hers” willing to offer her any assistance. McPhilamy said that Rodriguez was in bad shape and required immediate medical attention due to the “trauma of childbirth.”
Rodriguez allegedly gave birth in her bed earlier in the day, Atlanta Fox affiliate WAGA reported. Police say she wrapped the boy in blankets and stuffed him in a grocery bag, hiding his body there for about six hours.
Rodriguez’s uncle then allegedly caught her digging a hole near a tree in the backyard where she was planning on burying the child. The uncle then called 911.
Additionally, the affidavit reportedly states that Rodriguez admitted to mutilating her newborn’s body using a pocket knife.
An autopsy will be performed by the Cobb County Medical Examiner to determine the victim’s cause of death. Based on that report, authorities said Rodriguez could face additional charges.
Rodriguez is currently being held in the Cobb County Jail without bond.
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