ELIJAH DAY - 8 months - Maricopa County AZ

A teenage mother, whose infant drowned in a
bathtub in their Avondale home, faces up to seven years in prison when
she is sentenced Sept. 25 under a plea agreement, according to Maricopa
County Superior Court documents.
On July 22, Forrest Day, 17, pleaded guilty to one count of child
abuse, a Class 3 felony, a lesser charge than she originally was
indicted on, court records show. The felony carries a minimum sentence
of 2 1/2 years in prison and a maximum of seven years. One charge of
negligent homicide was dropped under terms of the plea deal.
Day was 16 when her son Elijah James died in February. She was
indicted in April, following a police investigation into the incident.
The 8-month-old drowned in the bathtub about 3:30 p.m. Feb. 21 after
Day set him down in the tub, turned the water on with the drain
unplugged and left the room, an Avondale police report shows.
Day told investigators she was looking for a towel but got
sidetracked with poems she was writing. After checking on Elijah, she
said she found her poetry book and wandered around the house looking
for a quiet place to write, eventually settling into her parents'
bedroom with the door closed.
Day's 9-year-old brother pulled him out of the water and yelled for
her, the report says. Day attempted CPR but when it didn't work, she
took him across the street to a neighbor's house, where the neighbor
called police and administered CPR.
Elijah was unresponsive and airlifted to St. Joseph's Hospital and
Medical Center in Phoenix, where he was pronounced dead at 4:36 p.m.