Mother killed newborn by putting him in refrigerator, police say

COLUMBIA, S.C. – A South Carolina mother charged with killing her newborn son by putting him in the refrigerator was expected to appear before a judge on Tuesday.

Angela Blackwell was expected to have a bond hearing at 2 p.m. at the Chester County jail, according to Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Robert Sprouse.

Blackwell, 27, was arrested by State Law Enforcement Division agents on Monday on a charge of homicide by child abuse after a lengthy investigation. She could face life in prison if convicted. Sprouse said he didn’t know if she had an attorney.

Deputies said Blackwell put her 4-day-old son in her refrigerator and shut the door for three hours before taking him out and seeking medical attention on February 27.

First-responders tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at a hospital. An autopsy showed that the boy, William David Blackwell, died from hypothermia with asphyxiation from being placed in the cold, according to Chester County Coroner Terry Tinker.

According to an online obituary for her infant son, Blackwell has another child. A Facebook profile that appears to belong to Blackwell shows her posing with a toddler and a newborn in photos posted the day after William’s birth.

Authorities haven’t said what they think may have led Blackwell to act as she did, and there was no answer at a phone number listed for the home where she and her family live.

The boy’s father, who is not charged in connection to his death, has a lengthy arrest record. Jeffery Paul Lewis, 35, has theft convictions in South Carolina dating back to 2005 and served more than two years in prison after a probation violation, Corrections Department spokeswoman Stephanie Givens said.

There was no answer Tuesday at phone numbers listed for Lewis.