LAKELAND, FL -- The Polk County Sheriff’s Office is still awaiting autopsy results on 5-month-old Chauntasia Gardner.
Gardner died this past weekend. According to Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, she was the victim of starvation. Judd arrested Chauntasia’s parents, Chauncey Gardner and Tivasha Logan. They now face murder charges.
According to Judd, Chauntasia’s parents did not take her to a doctor once after she was born and released from the hospital.
Dr. James Orlowski, chief of pediatrics at University Community Hospital, said an infant would normally see a doctor, on average, once a month after they were born.
Orlowski also said babies grow on a daily basis during their first year of life. On average, they would be expected to double their birth weight in their first six months, and triple their birth weight in their first year, Orlowski said.
Chauntasia, on the other hand, did not gain weight, Judd said. In fact, she lost two pounds from the weight she was when she left the hospital. Judd attributes the weight loss to starvation.
“The baby’s body starts eating itself, digesting muscle it has once it has digested what fat is still left,” Orlowski explained. “If the baby’s not gaining weight, there’s something wrong. And if the baby is losing weight, there’s something more seriously wrong.”
Most doctors suggest that 5-month old babies should receive 25-40 ounces of formula each day. According to Judd, there were only two ounces of formula in Chauntasia’s entire house.
Judd also said that the formula mixture being used was incorrect. Instead of half formula and half-water, Chauntasia’s parents were using one-third formula and two-thirds water.
“It’s terrible. It’s devastating,” said Orlowski. “Something like this should never happen anywhere in the world, but certainly not in the United States.”
