Child dies after drinking whiskey; grandmother, mom jailed

Posted at 1:19 PM, April 22, 2022 and last updated 7:49 PM, July 14, 2023

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A 4-year-old girl is dead after her grandmother allegedly forced her to drink a bottle of whiskey while her mother watched, Baton Rouge Police said.

Sgt. L’Jean McKneely, a police spokesperson, told news outlets the little girl’s grandmother, Roxanne Record, 53, and mother, Kadjah Record, 29, were arrested Friday, each on a charge of first-degree murder. It was unknown if either of them had an attorney who could speak on their behalf.

L to R: Roxanne Record, Kadjah Record (East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office)

Officers were sent to a Baton Rouge home around 11 a.m. Thursday after reports of an unresponsive child. The child, 4-year-old China Record, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

The East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner’s Office said an autopsy showed a cause of death was acute alcohol poisoning. The little girl had a blood-alcohol level of .680%, more than eight times the .08% driving limit for an adult, authorities said.

While investigating, detectives say they learned the victim’s grandmother forced her to drink a bottle of the alcohol while the mother watched.

The investigation remains ongoing.