On July 19th, while at work, Washington surfed the web on her phone to find an application that she could use to make a picture of her son.
She asked her ex- husband if he remembered how much she weighed.
As Washington was taking pictures of Karohn for his first birthday, he was in the backseat of her SUV only a short walk from the entrance of Big Bend Hospice, where she was working.
A mother found her son unresponsive in a car seat six hours after she started work.
The events before and after the baby's death were documented in a probable cause affidavit that led to Washington's arrest on a charge of manslaughter of a child.
She entered a not guilty plea on Monday.
"Florida law makes it a crime to leave a child unattended in a vehicle for more than 15 minutes," said State Attorney Jack Campbell.
She was freed on bond on Saturday. Adam Komisar wouldn't say anything about the case.
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Washington is divorced and has full custody of her older child and majority of her younger child. Washington's ex- husband had a baby every other week.
Washington would give the baby away at the store on Sunday evenings. She was going to pick him up from day care on Tuesday.
Washington was in control of the baby during the week of July 19
She left her house at 7 am to take her child to day camp.
She walks her 8-year-old child to the cafeteria while carrying the baby.
After pulling out of the Kate Sullivan parking lot, she drove straight to her job at Big Bend Hospice, five minutes away.
She grabbed her purse in the front seat of her car after backing into a parking space.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Washington did not remember hearing noise from her son and forgot that she was in the back of her car. He didn't have to second-guess whether he was with her that day.
She left for her lunch break at 2:13 p.m.
She looked at the baby in the backseat after a few moments inside her SUV.
Washington collapsed on the floor after bursting through the front doors of the facility. She heard a couple of indiscernible words.
As she approached, she saw the baby unresponsive in the back seat of the SUV that was open.
She lifted Karohn out of the car seat and handed him to another woman.
The baby was brought into the conference room and the two hospice workers performed cardiopulmonary arrest. A bystander made a call to the police.
The baby was dead within minutes.
On July 28, he would have been born.
The baby's temperature was recorded by a forensic specialist at Big Bend Hospice at 3:45pm.
He was left in the SUV for over six hours. hyperthermia was the cause of death.
According to court records, the specialist noted that Karohn appeared well-nourished, groomed, and free of any marks that indicated physical abuse.
The investigators began interviewing nursing staff as well as family members, as well as pulling security footage from the hospice facility and Kate Sullivan.
According to an affidavit, Washington's ex- husband told police that he wasn't aware of any other times that Washington forgot Karohn in the car.
Police said there was no evidence that Washington intended to kill her child.
According to court records, "Although it does not appear that she intended to leave Jean-Baptiste in the car, she neglected to maintain sufficient conscientiousness and implement precautionary measures to ensure the health and safety of her child."
When resolving the case, the state attorney would consider mercy.
He said that he was a father and struggled with it as well.
Christopher Cann can be reached at ccann@tallahassee.com and can also be reached on the social media platform of his choice.
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The article was originally published on the Democrat.
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