MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — A Dauphin County woman has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child in connection to the death of her two-month-old baby last month.
Jenna Beachley, 25, of Middletown, was charged after investigators determined there was probable cause to believe she was under the influence of alcohol and may have rolled on top of the child while co-sleeping.
Beachley's two-month-old daughter was pronounced dead at Hershey Medical Center on the morning of October 12, Middletown Police said in a criminal complaint affidavit.
Beachley allegedly admitted to police that she had left the baby with a babysitter and went out drinking with her roommate the night before. Beachley allegedly told police she returned home on the 200 block of East Main Street at about 2 a.m. and fell asleep with the baby roughly an hour later.
When she awoke around 6:50 a.m., the baby was unresponsive, Beachley told police. She attempted to administer CPR on the child while her roommate called 911.
A blood draw on Beachley determined she was likely under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident.
Beachley was charged on Monday and had her preliminary arraignment on Tuesday, according to court records. Bail was set at $25,000.
A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for December 11 before Magisterial District Judge David H. Judy.
