More than two months after the April death of a four-week-old Haverhill infant, the Essex County District Attorney’s office tells WHAV they have formally opened an investigation into circumstances surrounding the death of the boy.
Carrie Kimball, spokeswoman for District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett, said Thursday that such investigations are common for all “unattended and unexpected deaths” regardless of the potential presence of criminality.
“The involvement of the DA’s office is required by law and should not in any way indicate that these deaths are criminal or not. We are conducting investigations and we consider and look at all of the evidence to determine what happened,” Kimball told WHAV.
On April 18, State Police detectives assigned to the District Attorney’s office were notified of the death of a four-week-old baby boy in Haverhill, who had an open Department of Children and Families case in his name at the time. First responders took the child to Haverhill’s Holy Family Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Kimball said.
News of the Haverhill child’s death follows two other infant mortalities in the Merrimack Valley.
As previously reported, a 15-month-old Lawrence female in foster care was taken to Lawrence General Hospital after being found unresponsive on June 23.
In breaking news of the Haverhill infant’s death Thursday, Kimball also revealed that a Methuen infant died while in foster care in April. State Police detectives were notified on April 25 that a three-month-old baby boy passed away after emergency personnel could not revive the unresponsive child.
A cause and manner of death in all three cases has not yet been provided by the medical examiner. According to Kimball, the DA’s office is also investigating “at least two other baby deaths with no DCF involvement.”