Infant’s death at unlicensed Aliamanu home day care reclassified as manslaughter
The death of a 7-month-old girl on Feb. 24 reportedly at an unlicensed home daycare at Aliamanu Military Reservation has been reclassified from an unattended death to manslaughter, Honolulu police said today.
The case is still being investigated and no arrests have been made, said HPD spokeswoman Sarah Yoro.
Abigail Lobisch, who would have been 1 year old today, was being cared for along with a 2 1/2-year-old brother.
The girl’s mother, Anna, said in an April 26 MilitaryTimes.com story that “I didn’t even know about unlicensed care before this happened. Licensing never came to my mind. I guess I wasn’t really educated. I didn’t have any idea what that was. I had zero indication that was happening.”
The caregiver, a Navy wife, had texted and said, “please come now.” When Anna Lobisch pulled up, she saw Military Police, Honolulu police and an ambulance.
“I was freaking out,” she told the publication. “They said, ‘I’m so sorry. The babysitter found your daughter not breathing. We tried to administer CPR but she was too far gone.’ There was nothing they could have done for her.”
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The child’s father is in the Army National Guard, according to Military Times. The Army oversees Aliamanu Military Reservation.
U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii said Honolulu police have the lead on the case and the Army has a support role. Following the child’s death, the Army started a command investigation into policies, procedures and practices for how home-based daycares are run on Army installations.
An Army official said the report is done but hasn’t been released yet. Multiple GoFundMe accounts have raised over $10,000 for the family. Supporters also created a “JusticeforAbi” Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/JusticeForBabyAbi/.