A 7-year-old girl died after swallowing the cap of a baby bottle, which clogged her small intestines, according to an autopsy report from the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner’s Office. The girl’s mother and three others have been charged in connection with the incident.
Violet Mitchell died of failure to thrive as a result of “proximal small intestine obstruction by a foreign body,” according to an autopsy report issued on November 17.
The medical examiner’s office claimed it was unclear whether the obstruction discovered in Violet Mitchell’s intestines was “accidental or intentional.”
Mitchell’s mother, Lisa, 31, and her boyfriend, Anthony Yonko, 37, were arrested not long after Violet died. They have since been charged with second-degree murder in Violet’s death. The News Tribune reports that Yonko’s brother David Yonko, 25, and Mitchell’s 25-year-old sister Tiffany have also been charged with second-degree murder.
The autopsy also revealed that the girl weighed only 29 pounds and was “essentially skin on bones,” with a bacterial infection and abrasions on her cheek, shoulder, and left leg.
The situation was brought to light on August 2 when Lisa Mitchell and Anthony Yonko took the infant to St. Anthony’s Medical Center around 11:30 a.m.
According to KOCO, hospital staff discovered the girl was underweight and bruised.
According to the affidavit, the pair claimed to have been giving her soup and crackers because they thought she had the flu.
According to KOCO, a cousin later told authorities that Lisa Mitchell mistreated the girl regularly and tied her legs to the cot using zip ties.
Tera Day, a neighbor, told KFOR that two days before Violet died, she fed the toddler chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes, and carrots.
“I took her because she was hungry,” Day explained. “… She appeared malnourished. She didn’t tell me anything about her parents except that they loved her. That was all she said, and she cried, so I brought her home.
Lisa Mitchell has a hearing planned for November 27. David Yonko is due to appear in court on December 5. Anthony Yonko has a hearing scheduled for January 22. Tiffany Mitchell’s hearing is scheduled for March 10.
The four defendants’ attorneys did not respond to requests for comment.