A young mum in North Carolina has been arrested for stabbing her one-year-old baby in the back in front of a police officer.
The incident took place in the town of Greenville, which is located in Pitt County in the south-eastern US state of North Carolina, when a young mum allegedly stabbed her baby in front of a police officer and was promptly arrested for attempted murder and child abuse.
The suspect has been named as Cierra Dyer, 21, and police officers arrested her after arriving to see her arguing with a family member, who has not been named, over the custody of her unnamed one-year-old daughter before she allegedly headed into the kitchen and began stabbing the child in the back.
The police officer, who has not been named, followed her into the kitchen where the suspect then threw the knife on the floor before she was taken into custody.
The Greenville Police Department (GPD) first issued a statement saying that the officer observed the suspect pick up a knife, but they issued an update, on Monday 11th October, correcting their first statement and clarifying that the officer did not observe the suspect picking up the knife but walked into the kitchen as the suspect was allegedly already stabbing the child.
The Greenville Police Department’s statement also said the incident took place on Taylor Street. The police responded to the incident at that address after receiving a report of a “disturbance”, still according to their statement.
It also indicated that the suspect is currently being held at the Pitt County Detention Centre, which is also located in Greenville.
The police said the child was transported to Vidant Medical Center for treatment and is expected to make a full recovery.
The suspect has been taken into custody and charged with felony child abuse and attempted murder, according to the police.
It is currently unclear when the suspect will appear before a judge.
First-degree attempted murder is often punishable with a sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole, while second-degree attempted murder can land someone in prison for 5 to 15 years. It is currently unclear if the suspect has been charged with first-degree or second-degree attempted murder.
Felony child abuse can often earn a defendant 10 years or more in prison in the United States.
