Sheldon, Iowa — More information is now being revealed about the case involving the death of an infant last summer in Sheldon.
According to court documents obtained by KIWA, on the morning of July 26th of last year, 20-year-old Larry Ruotolo was responsible for the care of his 5-month-old daughter at their home in Sheldon. Authorities say the baby’s mother, 21-year-old Brittanee Baker was asleep in a bedroom at the residence. The document goes on to state that sometime prior to 9:00 am, the infant started crying and screaming. When Ruotolo couldn’t get her to stop screaming he lost his temper and allegedly assaulted the child by pushing her face into the floor and other abusive physical mechanisms, according to the court documents. The infant reportedly sustained a large abrasion to her forehead, bruising on her forehead, bruising inside and outside both ears, redness on the lower part of her right eye, erythema on her tongue, and bruising along her neck, court documents say. The documents go on to say that the baby was taken to the Sheldon ER by her mother, where she was treated and released. Court records say that neither the Department of Human Services nor law enforcement were alerted by hospital staff.
According to court documents, the following day, July 27th, the baby was again in the care of Larry Ruotolo when she was found unresponsive with no pulse and no breathing. She was taken to the ER and then flown to Sioux Falls where she died days later. The infant’s death was reportedly determined to have been caused by a suffocation event of an indeterminate nature, according to the documents.
Ruotolo and Baker, along with 49-year-old Stacie Hurlburt, all had knowledge of Ruotolo injuring the the baby on July 26th and, according to authorities, allegedly cooperated in fabricating a story about the child being injured by a lamp knocked over by cats, according to the court records. In addition, authorities contend the residence was cleaned and re-arranged to prevent DHS involvement, according to court documents.
Ruotolo and Baker are each charged with Felony Child Endangerment in the baby’s death, while Hurlburt faces a misdemeanor charge of being an Accessory After The Fact.
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First Update posted at 11:35 am 3/26/2021
Sheldon, Iowa — A third person was arrested Friday morning in connection with the death of a Sheldon infant last summer.
Sheldon Police Chief Scott Burtch says 49-year-old Stacie Hurlburt of Sheldon was arrested Friday morning and charged with being an Accessory After The Fact, which is an Aggravated Misdemeanor.
Police arrested 21-year-old Brittanee Lane Baker and 20-year-old Lawrence Charles Ruotolo, Jr. Thursday afternoon on warrants charging them with Felony Child Endangerment in connection with the same incident. Ruotolo, Jr. is also charged with a Probation Violation.
Chief Burtch tells KIWA that the three arrests stem from an ambulance call from last summer. On July 27th an ambulance was called for the report of an unresponsive infant. Medical crews were unable to save the child’s life.
Burtch says an investigation by the Sheldon Police Department, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Medical Examiner and the Iowa Department of Human services led to the charges against the trio.
The Chief says that investigation is continuing.
Photo Caption: From Left to Right – Stacie Hurlburt, Lawrence Ruotolo, Brittanee Baker
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Original Post 11:02 am, 3/26/2021
Sheldon, Iowa — A Pair of Sheldon residents were arrested Thursday afternoon on felony warrants.
According to Sheldon Police Chief Scott Burtch, the arrests of 21-year-old Brittanee Lane Baker and 20-year-old Lawrence Charles Ruotolo, Jr. stem from an ambulance call from last summer.
Burtch tells us that on July 27, 2020, an ambulance was summoned for an unresponsive infant. Despite the efforts of the medical crew, Burtch says the infant did not survive.
Following an extensive investigation by Sheldon Police, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Iowa Department of Human Services, arrest warrants were issued late last week for Baker and Ruotolo, Jr., charging them with Felony Child Endangerment. The pair were arrested Thursday afternoon.
The specific charge, Child Endangerment with Injury, is a Class D Felony and, upon conviction, carries a maximum prison term of 5-years.
In addition to the Child Endangerment charge, Burtch says Ruotolo, Jr. also had outstanding warrants for Probation Violation.
Chief Burtch says the investigation is continuing.
