Virginia police have arrested a registered nurse in reference to a twisted assault that left a weak new child in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit with an “unexplainable fracture” in November – and extra expenses may come as detectives proceed to probe a half dozen comparable incidents.
The 26-year-old suspect, Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, was booked into the Henrico County Jail on expenses of malicious wounding and little one abuse that brought about critical damage round 1:15 a.m. Friday.
A perplexing string of accidents to infants within the NICU at Henrico Medical doctors’ Hospital in Richmond in November and December prompted officers to launch an inside investigation and shut the unit to new sufferers on Christmas Eve.
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Erin Strotman pictured in a mugshot taken on Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. The registered nurse from Virginia faces expenses of kid abuse and malicious wounding in reference to an incident involving a new child at a Richmond-area NICU. (Henrico County Sheriff’s Workplace)
Public data present Strotman’s registered nurse’s license was first issued in 2019 and is legitimate till Might 2026.
“In late November/December, we found that three infants in our Henrico Medical doctors’ Hospital NICU had unexplainable fractures, just like an incident involving 4 infants in the summertime of 2023,” the hospital stated in a press release.
Involved dad and mom reported the accidents to Little one Protecting Companies final 12 months.
“Lastly we are able to get some solutions as to who abused our son. I want I may say it was a contented second studying of her arrest, nevertheless, studying the small print involving the opposite infants, the one feeling I’ve is disappointment and remorse,” Dominique Hackey, the daddy of one of many victims, informed Fox Information Digital Friday. “I’m heartbroken to be taught the diploma in what this particular person was allowed to get away with, and remorse that I ought to’ve spoke up sooner in hopes to stop different kids from getting harm. “
Considered one of Hackey’s twin sons, pictured with a supportive brace on his ankle after he suffered a wierd damage, which investigators later deemed to have been attributable to a hospital employee in a twisted case of kid abuse. (Courtesy of Dominique Hackey)
Hackey first went public together with his story to the native information station WTVR-TV final month, revealing the confusion surrounding one among his twin son’s accidents. He suffered a mysterious fracture to his tibia in September 2023. His mom, a former NICU nurse herself, reported the damage to social providers.
It wasn’t till a 12 months later that Henrico CPS informed them it had concluded that their son was the sufferer of bodily abuse from an unnamed hospital staffer. Then in October, county police reportedly informed them concerning the different, comparable instances.
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The hospital introduced its NICU shutdown on Dec. 24 after the three newest incidents, however even then the alleged assailant remained unknown till police introduced Strotman’s arrest Friday.
“Out of an abundance of warning, we aren’t admitting any further infants into our NICU presently,” the hospital stated on Christmas Eve. “Whereas fractures often occur with pre-term infants since they lack full fetal bone improvement, we’re actively working to find out how these fractures occurred.”
Now 16 months, Noah Hackey has since recovered from his damage. (Courtesy of Dominique Hackey)
Whereas hospital officers stated beforehand that fractures can occur to untimely infants, they nonetheless elevated safety, put in new surveillance programs and notified police after the second collection of assaults.
New security measures included coaching on basic security and the right way to determine and report indicators of abuse, head-to-toe examinations of the sufferers by docs, and an observer system the place every well being care supplier is accompanied by one other clinician every time they enter a child’s room, the hospital stated.
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In addition they turned over hours of surveillance video to police, who have been nonetheless going by footage after arresting Strotman in reference to an incident that occurred on Nov. 10.
“We admire the households’ and public’s persistence as we work as completely and expeditiously as doable to analyze each piece of proof in connection to those instances,” Henrico Chief of Police Eric English stated in a press release. “I might additionally prefer to acknowledge the unwavering efforts of our detectives who proceed to comb by lots of of hours of footage and lengthen my honest gratitude to Henrico’s Little one Protecting Companies (Division of Social Companies), the Henrico County Commonwealth Legal professional’s Workplace, Virginia State Police, the Virginia Division of Well being, and the Workplace of the Legal professional Common for his or her help on this matter.”
Costs haven’t been filed in Hackey’s case, however police stated they’re actively gathering proof in all the remaining incidents.
Lastly we are able to get some solutions as to who abused our son. I want I may say it was a contented second studying of her arrest, nevertheless, studying the small print involving the opposite infants, the one feeling I’ve is disappointment and remorse.
Strotman is a resident of Midlothian, a suburb of Richmond, and authorities are taking a look at her in reference to numerous comparable instances between 2023 and 2024, Henrico police stated Friday – together with inactive instances.
“All the beforehand closed instances associated to those incidents have been reopened,” police stated in a press release. “All the households concerned on this present broader investigation have been notified.”
Attributable to well being care privateness legal guidelines, authorities stated they might not launch many further particulars.
A Google Maps picture exhibits the hospital’s ambulance bay. Authorities have elevated security measures as police say a registered nurse is accountable for not less than one assault on a new child within the neonatal intensive care unit. (Google Maps)
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“We’re each shocked and saddened by this improvement within the investigation and are centered on persevering with to take care of our sufferers and offering assist to our colleagues who’ve been deeply and personally impacted by this investigation,” HCA Healthcare, which owns the hospital, stated in a press release.
With further expenses doable, police are asking anybody with data to contact detectives at police@henrico.gov, go to P3tips.com or name Crime Stoppers at 804-780-1000.
Courtroom data present Strotman’s prior run-ins with the regulation concerned solely minor site visitors offenses.
She was scheduled for arraignment Friday morning on the Henrico Juvenile and Home Relations District Courtroom.
As for the Hackey household, their son has since recovered from his fracture and is doing properly.
“He’s a really adventurous little boy,” his father stated.
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