Doctor: Baby found dead at Henrico motel suffered feeding neglect, recent cocaine exposure

A Henrico judge stated there was enough "probable cause" to certify all charges Monday against the parents of a one-month-old baby girl who was found unresponsive inside a motel room near Richmond International Airport this summer.

Derrick Dwayne Carter and Ashton Marie Leeper are each charged with second-degree murder and child neglect in connection with their daughter’s June 29 death. Henrico County Police announced the charges in July.

The case will now go before a grand jury.

During Monday’s hearing, the judge heard testimony from several witnesses, including Dr. Robin Foster, a child abuse expert at VCU Health.

Foster testified that the baby had severe hyperthermia at the time of death and had experienced feeding neglect. She testified the infant had gone approximately 12 hours without being fed, and a baby that age should have been fed every two to three hours.

Foster also testified that the baby had cocaine in her urine at birth and cocaine in her blood at the time of her death. 

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