The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office has ruled the death of a 3-year-old Bedford County toddler who died May 29 as a homicide due to asphyxiation.
The examiner’s office said Travis W. Young died at 4 p.m. at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh about 18 hours after he was taken by ambulance to UPMC in Bedford, where he was initially treated May 28 for choking on baby wipes.
The toddler later was airlifted to Pittsburgh, according to state police in Bedford.
Last week, troopers charged the boy’s stepmother, Chelsea Renae Cooley, 31, of Everett, with criminal homicide, endangering the welfare of children, aggravated assault, aggravated assault on a victim less than 6 years old, strangulation, reckless endangerment and simple assault.
Paramedics told state police that they removed four wet wipes from the child’s throat using “long foreceps,” according to court documents. It was the paramedics’ opinion that the wipes were lodged so far down his throat that he never could have put them there himself, according to court records.
Police said the boy’s father was working a 4 p.m. May 28 to 4 a.m. May 29 shift when the incident occurred.
Cooley told police that the 3-year-old had a temper tantrum while eating lunch and spent the rest of the day watching cartoons. She said put him to bed after he refused to eat dinner, police said.
She told police she checked on the boy about an hour later at 8:30 p.m. May 28 and found him cold and unresponsive. She telephoned for an ambulance, police said.
“An autopsy was completed, which revealed extensive bruising and injury to the victim’s body,” Trooper Nickolas Luciano said.
Cooley is being held without bail in the Bedford County Jail pending a preliminary hearing tentatively scheduled Wednesday.
