A 6-month-old baby was taken to the hospital in serious condition after being pepper sprayed during an argument, according to the St. Marys Police Department.
According to police, during the dispute, Amiera Ford, 19, purposely deployed the pepper spray onto the baby and the baby’s 17-year-old mother.
When police arrived at a home in a cul-de-sac on Pindale Court, EMS was already on the scene. According to the arrest report, the baby girl was struggling to breathe. Her face was swollen and her eyes were shut.
The 17-year-old’s mother told police that she and her daughter were leaving their home and attempting to get into their car when Ford drove into their driveway. Ford, according to the mother, started yelling at the 17-year-old, who was trying to secure her baby in a car seat. That’s when Ford sprayed them with pepper spray.
According to the report, police later learned that Ford had followed the 17-year-old mom home, parked her car and waited for the 17-year-old to come back out. The report states that Ford eventually left but came back in a black SUV with several people inside.
When the 17-year-old came back out of her home and was trying to load her baby into the car, the people in the SUV allegedly got out and tried to jump the 17-year-old.
Another adult witness said her son tried to intervene with the people from attacking the 17-year-old, but it was not enough to prevent her and her baby from being pepper sprayed.
The witness said the teen screamed for Ford to stop spraying the baby, but her requests were ignored. The witness also told police that the teen threatened to call the police, leading Ford and the others who were with her to get into the SUV and drive off.
Hours later, Ford was arrested at the Lake Point Apartment complex in Kingsland, where she lives and charged with first-degree felony child abuse and two counts of battery.
According to the report, Ford told police that the office did not pepper spray the baby, which she said before the officers asked her any questions about the incident.
Ford is being held without bond at the Camden County jail.