Mother arrested in infant's death
- A woman has joined her husband in the Delaware County jail, arrested in the death of her infant son.
- Sheryl Wallace, 21, is preliminarily charged with neglect of a dependent and obstruction of justice.
- Her husband, Cory, faces those charges and three others stemming from their baby's February death.
- Police say the couple failed to seek medical attention for the baby after Cory Wallace dropped him.
MUNCIE — A few days after giving birth to her second child, Sheryl Ashley Wallace on Wednesday was arrested in connection with the death of her first baby.
The 21-year-old mother, most recently of Indianapolis, is preliminarily charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death and obstruction of justice.
Cory Wallace allegedly told investigators he dropped the baby on a hardwood floor in the family's Meeker Avenue home. Rather than seek medical attention for the child's brain injuries, Wallace said he put his son in a playpen, and later determined the baby had died.
The father said he then set fires in Jensen's bedroom in a bid to cover up the cause of the child's death.
The night of their baby's death, the Wallaces told authorities they were in another room when the fire broke out in Jensen's bedroom.
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Sheryl Wallace was treated at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital for smoke inhalation. Her husband claimed he suffered hand burns in a bid to rescue his son.
According to a court document, Sheryl Wallace told police her son was "happy, smiling (and) not fussy" when she put him down for a nap about two hours before the fire was reported. A child abuse pediatrician, however, told investigators that the baby's "abusive head trauma" — previously called shaken baby syndrome — likely would have led to a "demeanor.. inconsistent" with his mother's account.
An autopsy revealed the baby had died before the fires were set in his room and that he had had suffered earlier injuries, including broken ribs, that reflected abuse.
Sheryl Wallace also gave an account of her husband discovering the fire that evening that was inconsistent with his later confession to police.
Cory Wallace is charged with five felonies — neglect of a dependent resulting in death, battery resulting in serious bodily injury to a person less than 14 years of age, arson, battery on a person less than 14 years old and obstruction of justice. His trial is scheduled, in Delaware Circuit Court 1, for Jan. 25.
Sheryl Wallace testified at an Aug. 23 hearing, urging Judge Marianne Vorhees to reduce her husband's $180,000 bond, saying she needed his "help and support" during the upcoming birth of their second child.
The judge denied the motion for a bond reduction. On Tuesday, Vorhees denied a request by Cory Wallace's public defender to have his client examined by mental health professionals.
The judge noted Wallace "has not filed a notice of insanity," which would generally precede such examinations. Chief Trial Deputy Prosecutor Eric Hoffman had objected to the motion.
In January, Cory Wallace pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent in a Marion County court. That conviction — resulting in Wallace being placed on home detention — stemmed from injuries, including rib fractures, suffered in 2012 by another child he fathered.
Sheryl Wallace is not the mother of that victim. She was apprehended by Muncie police in Indianapolis on Wednesday afternoon. Her newborn child is reportedly in the care of Child Protective Services.
Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. You can also follow him on Twitter @DouglasWalkerSP.