Two-month-old baby dies at a hospital, and her mother then gets arrested

Kings County sheriff’s detectives arrested a woman at a rural Hanford home for suspicion of homicide in the death of her 2-month-old daughter.

Kings County Jail records show that Veronica Alice Brouwer, 40, was arrested Wednesday night at her home in the 8300 block of Idaho Avenue, south of Hanford.

At about 7 p.m. on June 22, Kings County Emergency Medical Services records show that sheriff’s deputies and paramedics were sent to Brouwer’s home on the report of an infant under 1-year-old in cardiac or respiratory arrest.

Initial statements to deputies indicated the baby was found face down on a mattress and may have suffocated, authorities said.

The child was taken to Adventist Medical Center in Hanford and transferred to Valley Children’s Hospital, where she died on June 23.

Detectives conducted interviews of the parents and found “inconsistencies in their information regarding the events leading up to the infant being found unresponsive,” a Kings County Sheriff’s Office report said.

“No visible injuries were found,” sheriff’s officials said.

The child’s father was determined not to be at home when the injuries reportedly occurred, the sheriff’s office said.

On Wednesday, an autopsy was conducted by the Kings County coroner, which revealed blunt-force trauma injuries to the infant’s head, which led to her death.

In follow-up interviews, detectives determined that Brouwer caused the child’s injuries.

Brouwer remains in Kings County Jail.

This story was originally published June 29, 2017 at 12:41 PM with the headline "Two-month-old baby dies at a hospital, and her mother then gets arrested."