15-Month-Old Boy Found Dead in Queens; Mother Hospitalised With Wrist Injuries

A tragedy struck a family on Monday when a 28-year-old mother with wrist injuries and her 15-month-old baby boy were found unresponsive during a welfare check at a Queens home, leaving the community struggling to understand how and why it happened.

Enumerating details without naming the suspect, the New York Police Department disclosed that the woman was found near her son with slashed wrists and is being hospitalised.

The mother was found in the bathroom with blood oozing from her slashed wrists in what investigators believe was a suicide attempt following the child's death.

The emergency responders reported the incident at 1:30 PM on 29 December 2025, during a check, and immediately shifted both the mother and child to Jamaica Hospital, where the baby boy was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.

A Growing Crisis of Postnatal Violence

The incident in Jamaica is part of a disturbing spike in maternal-related homicides across the New York metropolitan area in late 2025.

Just weeks prior, city advocates raised alarms regarding the lack of mental health resources for mothers struggling with severe postnatal psychosis or isolation.

While a motive in this specific case has not been established, neighbours described the mother as a 'quiet' woman who mostly kept to herself.

'I only knew them face to face, just a neighbourly smile,' said one resident, though others reported hearing 'aggressive screams' from the home shortly before police arrived.

The police officials have noted that no previous domestic disturbance calls had been recorded at the address, making the sudden outburst of violence even more 'unthinkable' for the local community.

The Mystery of the 'Clean' Injuries

Officers believed the blood on the boy's chest indicated a stabbing, but once evaluated at Jamaica Hospital, it was confirmed that his skin was entirely intact. This has shifted the investigation toward internal injuries or possible asphyxiation.

Sources close to the investigation suggest that the mother may have attempted to 'clean' the scene or the child before harming herself, a pattern sometimes seen in cases of filicide-suicide attempts where the perpetrator experiences immediate remorse.

Investigators reportedly recovered a box cutter at the scene, believed to be the instrument used by the mother for her self-inflicted wounds.

As detectives comb through evidence of medications or toxic substances, the local community has begun placing candles and flowers outside the home, mourning a life cut short before it truly began.

Support Systems Under Scrutiny

The tragedy has reignited a fierce debate over the effectiveness of New York's Administration for Children's Services.

Although there is currently no evidence that the family was under ACS supervision, city officials are facing questions about the 'gaps' in the safety net that allow such incidents to occur in residential neighbourhoods.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is conducting an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death, including whether suffocation or poisoning played a role.

For the residents of Jamaica, Queens, the end of 2025 is marked by a sombre reminder of life's fragility and the silent struggles behind closed doors.