5 YO Alexa Linboom Forced to Drink 2.4 Liters of Liquid Dies Of Brain Swelling

[MuffyBee]

http://www.wfaa.com/news/national/244290031.html
Trial set in case of girl forced to drink soda
February 7, 2014

ROGERSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — An East Tennessee couple accused of killing the man's 5-year-old daughter by forcing her to drink large quantities of grape soda and water will face trial in October.
Randall and Mary Vaughn were arraigned in Hawkins County on Friday.
 
The couple did not enter a plea.
According to the autopsy report, on Jan. 1, 2012, the Vaughns forced Alexa Linboom to drink about 2.4 liters of soda and water over a one-to-two hour span as a punishment. The massive liquid intake caused her brain to swell and herniate.
The Vaughns are charged with murder, abuse and neglect. They are jailed on $500,000 bond each.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.wnct.com/story/24650998/father-and-wife-charged-with-murder-of-5-year-old-girl
Hawkins County couple charged with killing girl by making her drink 2 liters of soda & water to appear in court this morning
Posted February 6, 2014, Updated February 7, 2014


 

Back on January 1, 2012 investigators say the father of 5-year-old Alexa Linboom and his wife took the unresponsive girl to a Rogersville emergency room. That same day Alexa was airlifted to Niswonger Children's Hospital in Johnson City.

Reportedly, she had severe brain damage, was blue and was not responding.  She  passed away a few days later after she was determined to be brain dead and removed from life support.

"She was declared brain dead a couple of days later - and that's an important distinction. She had been brain dead for some time before she was actually declared brain dead," said District Attorney Berkley Bell.

After an autopsy, Alexa's death was ruled a homicide and it was determined the cause of death was "acute fluid/water intoxication". 

An investigation revealed the girl had been forced to drink the water and soda over a one to two hours as punishment. The massive intake of fluid caused her brain to swell and herniate.

"She was allegedly force fed so much liquid that it caused the sodium level in her body to go down and her brain to swell, which eventually led to her becoming unconscious there in the home and go into a type of seizure. Ultimately - led to her death."

The Hawkins Co. Sheriff's Office recently charged 41-year-old Randall Lee Vaughn and his wife 58-year-old Mary Lavonne Vaughn both from Surgoinsville, TN with the death of the little girl.

Both are being charged with first degree murder, two counts of aggravated child neglect, and aggravated child abuse.
 
The Vaughn's are each being held on a $500,000 bond and will make their first court appearance Friday morning at 9:00am.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/08/justice/tennessee-girl-soda-death/
Parents killed girl by making her drink too much grape soda, water, authorities say
February 8, 2014

(CNN) -- A Tennessee couple faces murder charges for allegedly punishing the man's 5-year-old daughter by making her gulp excessive amounts of water and grape soda, leading to her death, authorities said.
Alexa Linboom was forced to guzzle the fluids after she took "one or two grape drinks" that belonged to her stepmother, District Attorney Berkley Bell told CNN affiliate WJHL.
"She was allegedly force-fed so much liquid that it caused the sodium level in her body to go down and caused her brain to swell," he said.
In addition to drinking more than 2 liters of fluids in about two hours, she also suffered other forms of punishment, Bell told the affiliate. He did not get into specifics.
The child became unresponsive, and the pair drove her to the hospital on New Year's Day in 2012.
Two days later, she was declared brain dead and removed from life support.
A two-year investigation determined her death was a homicide as a result of acute fluid/water intoxication, the Hawkins County Sheriff's Office said in a statement this week.
Randall Lee Vaughn, 41, and and his wife, Mary Lavonne Vaughn, 58, have each been charged with first degree murder, two counts of aggravated child neglect and aggravated child abuse.
 

[MuffyBee]

http://www.wfaa.com/news/national/244022981.html
Tenn girl, 5, dies from being forced to drink soda
February 6, 2014

 
An investigation revealed the girl had been forced to drink approximately 2.4 liters of water and soda over one to two hours as punishment. The massive intake of fluid caused her brain to swell and herniate.
According to the autopsy, when she was forced to all that liquid, she began vomiting, urinated on herself and asked to take a bath.
"Outside of the bathtub, she tried to eat oatmeal with assistance then started clenching her hands." She arrived at the hospital about 2 to 3 hours later.
"Caretakers told hospital staff that during the ride to the hospital, she sat up in the vehicle and played patty cake," according to the autopsy.
She was transported by air to a regional hospital where she was pronounced brain dead two days later.
The autopsy states that the girl had moved to Tennessee to live with her father about three months before her death. The move was prompted by allegations of neglect at her previous home.
A pediatric check-up about three months before her death had shown no significant problems. She was taken to an outpatient clinic about a month before her death for excessive thirst, urination and eating, but nothing was found to be wrong with her.
According to the autopsy, "Other adults who had regular contact with the child before and after her move to Tennessee describe her as a normal, healthy child and did not notice any unusual eating, drinking habits and that she did not wet her pants at school."

[MuffyBee]

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-grape-soda-death-tennessee-20140207,0,7707927.story
Grape soda death: Parents plead not guilty to murdering daughter, 5
February 7, 2014

A Tennessee couple pleaded not guilty Friday to murder and child abuse charges for allegedly intoxicating their 5-year-old daughter by having her chug more than two liters of water and grape soda, leading to her death.

Randall Lee Vaughn, 41, and Mary Vaughn, 58, of Surgoinsville were arrested this week after a two-year investigation into the death of the man’s daughter and his wife’s stepdaughter.

The Hawkins County Sheriff’s Department said the parents drove an unresponsive and discolored Alexa Linboom to the emergency room Jan. 1, 2012. She died two days later because of "acute fluid/water intoxication." It caused her sodium level to drop, swelling the brain with water and severely damaging it. The death was eventually ruled a homicide.

The Vaughns disciplined Alexa by forcing her to drink about 2.4 liters of fluid, including several 12-ounce cans of grape soda, in a span of one to two hours, according to an autopsy report prepared by the Quillen College of Medicine at East Tennessee State University. She was bruised throughout her body and had cuts on her face, the report states.
 
The report also notes Alexa had moved to Tennessee about three months before her death because of allegations of neglect at her previous, unspecified home.

Both of the Vaughns were charged with first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse and two counts of aggravated child neglect.

An obituary in The Rogersville Review said Alexa Rae Linboom was a tomboy who enjoyed coloring, playing with her Barbie dolls, animals and being with her two brothers and three sisters. The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services told the Associated Press that the five remaining siblings were taken into state custody in February 2013.

The couple, who are being held on $500,000 bail, were given an Oct. 20 trial date by a judge and are due back in court for a pretrial hearing in April.

A spokeswoman for the Hawkins County district attorney’s office said prosecutors have not decided what sentence they would seek, with options including life in prison, life in prison without the possibility of parole and the death penalty. 

Video at Link

[MuffyBee]

http://www.colbochpricefuneralhome.com/fh/obituaries/obituary.cfm?o_id=1356420&fh_id=11790



Alexa Rae Linboom
(August 16, 2006 - January 3, 2012)


Alexa Rae Linboom age 5 of Surgionsville became the fairest princess in all the land on January 3, 2012 at Niswonger Children’s Hospital in Johnson City.

Alexa was a Tom-boy and a Girly-girl who was Top of her Class in Mrs. Hostatler’s Kindergarten Class at Surgionsville Elementary School. She loved school and her classmates. Some of the things that brought enjoyment to her life was coloring, playing with her Barbie dolls, her love of animals, but her most joy came when playing with her brothers and sisters.
More...

[Sister]

http://www.colbochpricefuneralhome.com/fh/obituaries/obituary.cfm?o_id=1356420&fh_id=11790



Alexa Rae Linboom
(August 16, 2006 - January 3, 2012)


Alexa Rae Linboom age 5 of Surgionsville became the fairest princess in all the land on January 3, 2012 at Niswonger Children’s Hospital in Johnson City.

Alexa was a Tom-boy and a Girly-girl who was Top of her Class in Mrs. Hostatler’s Kindergarten Class at Surgionsville Elementary School. She loved school and her classmates. Some of the things that brought enjoyment to her life was coloring, playing with her Barbie dolls, her love of animals, but her most joy came when playing with her brothers and sisters.
More...