Police say a couple drank whiskey before sharing a bed with their 3-month-old son, and he’s the second of their babies to die in 2 years

Nicholas Patrick Romero and Christina Joy Patton were booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on Wednesday on suspicion of child abuse homicide after their three-month-old son was found dead. It is the second infant death for this couple in two years, as reported by People. Authorities arrived at the Bluffdale residence on Wednesday morning after being called regarding an unresponsive infant. Officers observed pink-colored fluid coming from his nose and mouth during CPR, per the police affidavit.

They found multiple empty alcohol bottles in the immediate area where the infant had been sleeping, and they also observed items believed to be drug paraphernalia. According to the police affidavit, the parents admitted to consuming alcohol before going to sleep with the child in their bed the night before. Patton reportedly told officers she drank three to four shots of whiskey. Romero first reported two drinks, and he later acknowledged four to five shots of whiskey and marijuana use after work.

Romero told investigators he swaddled the baby shortly before midnight and placed him in a Boppy-type pillow between the two parents, with a bottle of formula propped for him. Patton reportedly told officers that the baby began crying at approximately 1:30 a.m. She stated that she removed him from his pillow, unwrapped his swaddle, and placed him on her chest. Patton said she then moved the infant to her right arm, where both fell asleep.

Police say the baby spent hours asleep against his mother

Romero woke up for work at approximately 5:15 a.m. and observed the baby positioned toward Patton’s body. He attempted to wake the infant, and he placed a call to 911 as the baby was pale, unresponsive, and not breathing. The couple told police they started CPR before help arrived. Despite life-saving measures performed by emergency responders, the baby was pronounced dead. Both parents are being held without bail on a second-degree felony count of child abuse homicide.

The parents’ condition that night is part of the child abuse homicide investigation. Patton admitted to taking her prescribed medication and registered a 0.011 blood alcohol level on a preliminary breath test. That test, however, came about 12 hours after her reported last drink. Romero refused a preliminary breath test, and investigators obtained blood samples from both parents. Investigators allege that both parents acted with criminal negligence by creating and disregarding a substantial risk to their son’s life.

Neither Romero nor Patton has been convicted, and the child abuse homicide allegation has not been tested in court. The arrests follow the death of the couple’s baby daughter two years ago, when she was also about three months old. That child had medical complications from birth, including a cleft palate and a recessed jaw, according to her obituary. She also required a feeding tube.

The earlier death matters to investigators, as they believe it should have provided the parents with a heightened awareness of the risks associated with unsafe sleeping practices. The affidavits do not establish the girl’s cause of death, and her death remains a separate pending case. Court records do not indicate whether anyone has filed charges in that case. Formal child abuse homicide charges could take time, as the infant’s official cause of death has not been released.

Police in the child abuse homicide case are seeking search warrants for the parents’ phone records, child welfare records, and the baby’s medical records. Blood samples taken from Romero and Patton are expected to undergo additional testing.