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Baby in critical condition after mother goes on drug binge, gives birth in motel bathtub

Chrystal Hassell, 37, was charged with child neglect after Marin County deputies say she gave birth in an Ocala, Fla. bathtub while on a drug binge and cut the ...

Chrystal Hassell, 37, was charged with child neglect after Marin County deputies say she gave birth in an Ocala, Fla. bathtub while on a drug binge and cut the umbilical cord with her teeth. (Marion County Sheriff’s Office/ News 13)

(FoxNews)  A newborn baby in Florida is in critical condition after his mother gave birth while on a 24-hour drug binge, MyNews13.com reported.

The baby’s mother, Chrystal Hassell, 37, was seven months pregnant when she gave birth. She told investigators she went into labor after spending the day smoking crack cocaine. She delivered the baby alone in a motel bathtub and reportedly chewed though the umbilical cord with her teeth.

“At one point, according to her telling investigators, the baby stopped breathing,” Judge Cochran, public information officer for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, told MyNews13.

Hassell gave the baby breaths for nearly an hour before calling 911.

Since being airlifted to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Fla., the baby remains in critical condition.

Hassell checked in to the Vacation Host Inn in Ocala, Fla. on Friday night with her 11-month-old son and her boyfriend, Vincent Terry, who was wanted for attempted murder in Colorado. At the time of the baby’s birth, Terry and the child were out on an errand.

After giving birth, Hassell called Terry to tell him to return to the motel. On his way back, Terry was pulled over for speeding— and it was only after learning that Terry wasn’t coming that Hassell called 911.

“She should have called 911 earlier — she should have reached out to medical professionals, she didn’t do that, and that’s why she’s in jail,” Cochran said.

Hassell and Terry are both in Marion County Jail, where she has been charged with child neglect.

The 11-month-old boy has been placed in foster care.

Click for more from News 13.

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