Background: The Allen County Jail in Fort Wayne, Ind. (Google Maps). Inset: Quinzena Rancefer (Fort Wayne Police Department).
A woman in Indiana has admitted to neglecting her 2-month-old daughter by falling asleep with the child in her arms, causing the baby to become wedged underneath a cushion and suffocate.
Quinzena Rancefer was 31 when she was charged in February with neglect of a dependent causing serious bodily injury, as Law&Crime previously reported. On Monday, she pleaded guilty as part of a plea agreement, court records show, canceling her scheduled jury trial.
The case stretches back to March 25, 2024, when Rancefer fell asleep on her couch with her baby in her arms, Fort Wayne-based ABC and NBC affiliate WPTA reported. She said her child normally slept in a nearby bassinet, but on this night, the baby slept between her and the back of the couch so she wouldn't fall off the furniture.
Authorities said Rancefer's cousin arrived at the apartment and found the baby "face down and lying mostly underneath the couch cushion." The cousin said he hit Rancefer several times because it was difficult to wake her up.
The cousin realized the baby wasn't breathing, and Rancefer, at some point, did wake up, becoming "hysterical" upon learning this fact.
The Fort Wayne Police Department was called to the home over a report of a young child in critical condition. Emergency personnel arrived, too, and pronounced the girl dead as a result of asphyxia due to overlay and wedging.
As the investigation continued and police obtained a warrant to search the apartment, investigators reportedly found a glass pipe with burnt residue inside, a torch lighter, suspected marijuana, and prescription pills. When Rancefer submitted to an oral drug screen, she tested positive for methamphetamine, authorities said.
An Indiana Department of Child Services case manager discovered the child had been drug-exposed and had THC in her system, the local outlet reported.
Rancefer is due to be sentenced on Sept. 18, per court records.
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