Not-guilty plea in case of dead baby

ZACHARY JANOWSKI

The Willimantic Chronicle

ROCKVILLE - The former state Department of Children and Families employee accused of killing a foster child in her care pleaded not guilty Friday in Rockville Superior Court to manslaughter charges.

Suzanne Listro, 42, of 260 Stearns Road, entered not-guilty pleas to charges of first-degree manslaughter and risk of injury to a minor.

At an October appearance, Listro's attorney asked the court for additional time to review documents related to the case.

Listro worked for DCF for 12 years and spent a year as a "children's services consultant."

Separate from her employment, she is also a foster-care provider licensed by the department.

According to the warrant for her arrest, Listro called DCF May 12 to ask about a baby the department wanted to place in her care.

However, DCF staff told her that particular child was no longer available, but another child was.

According to court documents, a DCF employee brought the child, Michael Brown Jr., to Listro's home at 5:30 p.m.

According to DCF, Brown was the first foster child placed in Listro's care.

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Not-guilty plea in case of dead baby

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One week later, the baby was dead.

In addition to a criminal investigation, the child's death has prompted a review of department treatment of its own employees.

Court documents show inconsistency between Listro's accounts of events May 19 and medical evidence gathered by investigators.

In a recounting of the incident, Listro told police her son, Zachary, went to change into his pajamas after playing with the baby and she changed Brown's diaper while he played.

" The baby was lying on his back on the bottom left corner of the bed. Zachary was sitting in the middle of the bed. Ms. Listro got up from the bed and ejected the tape from the VCR in her bedroom," according to the police report. "As she was turning off the TV, she heard a bang and the baby crying. Ms. Listro turned around and saw Zachary still sitting in the middle of the bed."

However, Listro told police Brown was lying on his back on the floor in front of the bed.

"The baby's eyes were closed. He looked like he was wincing in pain," Listro told police.

According to court documents, Listro told police the baby cried and screamed, but then stopped and went limp while she picked him up.

She told police she put the baby back on the bed and his eyes started to close.

Listro said she "called his name and tried to wake him up."

When Listro tried to pick the baby up a second time, she said he was "even limper," according to court documents.

Listro told police she took thebaby downstairs and called 911.

While Listro was on the phone, she told police, Brown began to spit up formula and continued to do so as she breathed into the baby's mouth.

According to the documents, state police detectives "explained to Ms. Listro the importance of her telling the truth about how the baby was injured."

Police said Listro replied she was "not lying."

Police later met with Listro and her attorney at Manchester Memorial Hospital, where she had checked herself in for treatment.

In an interview with a detective, 3-year-old Zachary Listro said he did not see the baby get hurt.

According to court documents, Dr. Ronald Gross of Hartford Hospital told police "the victim's injury did not appear consistent with the reported fall."

Court documents describe the injury as "a red area on top of the victim's head above the forehead and a red area on the back of the victim's head."

According to court documents, Listro's attorney denied police further access to his client because of the medical examiner's preliminary findings.

The medical examiner's report identified the cause of death as "blunt traumatic head injury" and declared Brown's death a homicide.

The medical examiner told police the baby's injuries "were inconsistent with the injury history provided by Suzanne Listro, who stated the child had fallen off the bed."

Listro, who remains out on $980,000 bond, is scheduled to appear in Rockville Superior Court Jan. 23.