Arrest Documents: Mom Had Taken Meth Before Putting 2-Year-Old in Oven
A Texas mother accused of putting her 2-year-old daughter in the family’s oven had taken meth before the incident and had a history with child welfare authorities, according to arrest documents.
Tasha Hatcher, 35, has been charged with serious bodily injury to a child and is being held in lieu of $300,000 bail. The toddler remains at Parkland Memorial Hospital with second- and third-degree burns, authorities said.
Read: Girl, 2, Suffers Serious Burns After Mother Puts Her In Oven: Cops
The child will be placed in a foster home when she is released.
A neighbor called police last week, saying Hatcher had come over naked, and was carrying her daughter, who was also nude. The child had burn marks on her body, according to a probable cause affidavit, The Dallas Morning News reported Tuesday, citing KXAS-TV.
A Somervell County deputy dispatched to the scene reported Hatcher made sexual comments to him and was “singing to God and giving praise to him.” She also lunged at him, the deputy said.
She later told the deputy she’d put a cat in the oven before placing her daughter inside, according to the affidavit. She continually mentioned the synthetic drug K-2 and continued to act out sexually while being examined in an emergency room, the document said.
A family services official said the single mother had used methamphetamine before sticking her toddler in the oven, according to the affidavit. Hatcher also tested positive for pot and alcohol at the hospital, child welfare documents said.
Read: Fatally Burned 1-Year-Old Girl Was Placed in Oven By Sibling, Documents Say
The documents also said Hatcher had been visited by a representative from Child Protective Services in 2005 after a friend complained she allowed her son to leave home without parental supervision. A year later, she left her boy at a 24-hour daycare for more than 31 hours while working as a dancer, the documents said.
Workers at the center said she also seemed to be drunk when picking him up, according to records. The family could not be located to complete the inquiry.
Watch: 1-Year-Old Finds Bag of Meth In Walmart While Waiting to See Santa
