DALE CITY, Va. - A woman charged after her 9-month-old baby drowned in a bathtub pleaded guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor child neglect.
Julia Sumo, 22, was originally charged with felony child abuse after 9-month-old Gilliah Quansah died on Oct. 10, 2009.
Prosecutors amended that charge to a misdemeanor Wednesday.
According to prosecutors and court documents, Sumo was bathing the 9-month-old girl in the bathtub of her house on Kingswell Drive in Dale City about 10:30 a.m. that day.
Sumo told investigators that she thought she smelled food burning in the kitchen, where her roommate was cooking.
She said she left the baby standing in the bathtub to go to the kitchen, an adjacent room.
Sumo told police she pulled the tub stopper out of the tub before she left the bathroom, but “acknowledged she knew it was a slow-draining tub,” Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Jeanice Weithrop said.
Weithrop said it was not clear how long Sumo was out of the bathroom. Sumo first told police it was one minute, but later said it could have been several minutes.
When Sumo returned to the bathroom, she found the baby under water, laying on her back.
Sumo told her roommate to call 911. Her roommate then performed CPR on the baby, but the girl did not regain consciousness.
Rescue crews took the infant to Inova Fairfax hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
Prosecutors are recommending that Sumo be sentenced to 360 days in jail, with 330 days suspended on condition of her good behavior during five years of probation. They are also recommending she undergo mental health evaluations and parenting classes.
Sumo will be sentenced Nov. 3.
Sumo’s defense attorney, Carl Crews, said the entire Sumo family has been grieving after the loss of Gilliah.
“This child was loved and well taken care of by Julia,” he said.
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