Judge Denies Bond for Mother Charged in Boy’s Alligator-Death Case
The ruling followed prosecutors’ claims of July drug exposure involving her newborn and a history of prior abuse allegations.
Overview
- The Orleans Parish coroner determined that 12-year-old Bryan Vasquez died from blunt force trauma and drowning consistent with an alligator attack.
- Hilda Vasquez was arrested on September 7 and charged with negligent homicide and second-degree cruelty to a juvenile.
- In court, prosecutors said Vasquez and her newborn tested positive for cocaine a month before Bryan disappeared, and she was ordered to stay away from her three surviving children.
- Prosecutors also pointed to a 2014 cruelty-to-juveniles case in which Bryan, then an infant, suffered a fractured skull and broken legs.
- A United Cajun Navy volunteer using a drone located Bryan’s body on August 26 and reported gators had kept it submerged, and wildlife officials have since removed the alligators, according to reports.