A 23-year-old Florida mother has been charged with aggravated child abuse following the death of her six-month-old son, whose case police are investigating as a homicide.

Tatiana Norman called emergency services at 11:39 p.m. on June 29 and said Jeremiah was unresponsive, according to police accounts reported by The Mirror. He was taken to a Lakeland hospital and pronounced dead shortly after midnight.

Police said Norman initially claimed Jeremiah had fallen from a bed while she was preparing a bottle. She later suggested that either she or her one-year-old child might have rolled onto him while they slept.

Investigators also asked about an injury on Jeremiah’s leg. Norman offered several explanations, including bathwater, detergent and spilled broth. According to police statements, an autopsy report described the mark as resulting from “a more significant thermal event.”

Police focus on later account

Norman eventually told detectives that she had dropped Jeremiah while reaching for a remote control and searched online for signs of concussion rather than immediately seeking medical care.

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She also admitted that she “tossed” the infant into a playpen that lacked cushioning or soft padding. The police said, according to the newspaper, that the playpen stood on a tiled floor.

Lakeland Police Chief Sammy Taylor Jr. said during a news conference, “When she threw the infant into the playpen, a visceral and obvious reaction of curling his hands and pulling his hands up, I think that’s probably when the significant injury occurred.”

Police said Jeremiah later became lethargic and stopped taking formula. They alleged that Norman watched TikTok videos and accessed pornographic websites before eventually requesting emergency help.

“I feel like he’d been dead for several hours by the time she decided to call us,” Taylor said.

At the time of the reports, Norman was being held without bond. The charge remains an allegation, and the available reports did not establish that she had entered a plea.