Woman Charged With Manslaughter In Death Of 1-Year-Old Grandson

A 60-year-old woman has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the death of her 1-year-old grandson, police said.

Cora Brandon of Danbury, Connecticut, was arrested Wednesday after an investigation implicated her in the child’s death in March this year, police said. The woman was charged with first-degree manslaughter, five counts of risk of injury to a child, and possession of drugs.

Investigators from the Danbury Police Department were summoned to the Danbury Hospital on March 17 for the untimely passing of a one-year-old child. They found that the circumstances surrounding the child’s death were suspicious and initiated an investigation to determine the exact cause of his death.

“The investigation findings implicated Cora Brandon, the child’s grandmother, to be complicit in his death,” Danbury police said in a news release.

The Danbury Superior Court, on May 25, issued an arrest warrant for Brandon concerning her involvement with the death of the one-year-old child. She was arrested on May 26 by investigators from the Special Victims Unit and Special Investigations Division and was later transported to the Danbury Police.

The police said that the investigation is ongoing and further details of the case are not available. Brandon’s arrest warrant remains sealed, Fairfield Citizen reported. The woman has no extensive criminal record and worked in home health care until 10 years ago, according to court records.

However, state prosecutor Kristin Chiriatti argued in court that Brandon poses a threat to the community citing that “multiple other children were put at risk by the incident.”

The court ordered Brandon to be held on a $500,000 bond during her court appearance Thursday.

Earlier this month, a 54-year-old grandmother was arrested in Idaho after police found the body of her missing 8-year-old granddaughter from her car. The police arrested Connie Ann Smith after the child’s body was discovered in a trash bag in the back seat of her vehicle.

Taryn Summers was reported missing from her home on April 12. Smith was charged with felony for failure to notify of death and destruction of evidence. She was initially charged with first-degree murder but she is not currently facing those charges.