Parents stopped for Red Bull, candy bar, cigarettes on way to hospital as infant died from abuse: Police

A parent and begetter successful Indiana were arrested successful transportation with the decease of their 6-month-old daughter, who was cold, limp, and dying successful their car erstwhile they decided to halt for snacks and cigarettes alternatively of going consecutive to the hospital.

Grant Ethan Stevens and Hannah Marie Evans, some 30, are facing felony charges for allegedly depriving their babe of the exigency aesculapian attraction that could person saved her beingness successful October 2025.

Stevens faces 1 number of aggravated artillery and 2 counts of neglect of a dependent, with authorities alleging a horrific signifier of carnal maltreatment spanning the infant's abbreviated lifespan. Evans is charged with a azygous number of neglect of a babelike resulting successful death.

The probe stems from an incidental connected Oct. 28, 2025, wrong the couple's Valparaiso apartment, according to a report from The Chicago Tribune.

Stevens reportedly told a Department of Child Services researcher that helium took complaint of the child's attraction for 2 hours truthful Evans could instrumentality a break. While attempting a vessel feeding, Stevens claimed the kid began discharging mucus and vomit from her chemoreceptor and mouth, causing him to panic and effort backmost blows and CPR, constabulary said.

He did not notify Evans due to the fact that helium believed the child's breathing had stabilized, contempt noting a wheezing sound, The Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

Evans allegedly told constabulary she wore noise-cancelling headphones and was playing a handheld video crippled successful different country during the model of clip erstwhile the injuries occurred. She reportedly recalled proceeding respective "loud smacking" sounds and concisely went to cheque connected Stevens and the baby. After seeing vomit connected his garment and accepting his little mentation of what happened, she returned to her video game. The mates went to furniture aboriginal that evening portion the babe was down for the night.

The concern reportedly deteriorated rapidly aft the mates went to sleep. Evans stated that she felt "something was not right" with the kid overnight and noticed she missed her mean 1:30 a.m. feeding time, per the Tribune. When the mates awoke astatine 6 a.m. the adjacent morning, Stevens recovered the kid "cold to the touch" and seemingly lifeless.

Rather than calling 911 for an ambulance, the mates decided to thrust the kid themselves, claiming they thought it would beryllium faster. However, investigators determined that the travel took 30 minutes due to the fact that they made a deliberate detour to a Family Express state presumption — successful the other absorption from the infirmary — to bargain a Red Bull vigor drink, cigarettes, and a candy bar, the Times reported.

Upon arriving astatine Northwest Health — Porter, physicians reportedly discovered the kid had sustained a traumatic, perforated bowel and a fractured rib from weeks prior. She was transferred to the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital, wherever she succumbed to her injuries connected Oct. 31, 2025, and was pronounced dead.

A kid maltreatment adept astatine the infirmary noted that the babe was successful septic daze owed to a bodily corruption and was apt dying during the drive, an result the state presumption detour heavy exacerbated, according to the Tribune. The doc concluded determination was "no aesculapian explanation" for the catastrophic trauma different than carnal abuse.

The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office officially determined the child's decease was a homicide owed to aggregate injuries, revealing respective breached ribs successful assorted stages of healing.

Evans allegedly admitted to past reddish flags regarding her boyfriend's behavior, including a erstwhile incidental wherever the kid suffered abdominal bruising aft striking a java array portion successful his care. She besides noted that Stevens had antecedently referred to the 6-month-old miss arsenic a "b—," per the Tribune.

It was not instantly wide erstwhile the duo was scheduled to look successful court.