A Sequatchie County, Tenn., mother of four is behind bars and her 11-month-old son is in state custody after he was treated for alcohol poisoning from an adult beverage put into his baby bottle.
Heather M. Oakes, 27, of Lewis Chapel Mountain, was charged with aggravated child abuse and is due in court this morning for a bond hearing, according to Sequatchie County Sheriff’s Office detective Jody Lockhart.
Oakes was charged after authorities were contacted Monday by officials at Erlanger Sequatchie Valley in Dunlap about a baby being brought in by ambulance suffering from alcohol poisoning, Lockhart said. The baby was transferred to Children’s Hospital at Erlanger in Chattanooga in critical condition.
The detective said he was still awaiting blood test results to show exactly how much alcohol was in the baby boy’s system.
“It was high enough that it would make an adult have issues,” Lockhart said.
The baby is one of Oakes’ twins, according to Lockhart. Oakes also has two older children, a 4-year-old and an 8-year-old.
Lockhart said investigators found about 2 ounces of a clear alcoholic beverage in the 8-ounce size bottle. It’s unclear how much was in the bottle to begin with, he said.
Oakes contends the poisoning was accidental, Lockhart said.
“The mother states that she was making a baby bottle, and she put an alcoholic beverage in there instead of water,” he said.
Oakes has a court hearing set for Nov. 20, according to officials. She has no history of abusing children, but she has had theft charges in Sequatchie County and authorities there once took Oakes into custody on a fugitive from justice warrant issued from Georgia, Lockhart said. He didn’t know the details on the Georgia matter.
The baby has since been released to the custody of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, according to Lockhart.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.