Police: Death of baby at North Philadelphia day care 'suspicious'

NORTH PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Police are investigating the suspicious death of a 10-month-old baby at a North Philadelphia day care.

Shortly after 1 p.m. Wednesday police were called to a day care center in the 3500 block of Germantown Avenue for an unresponsive baby girl.

"I was just scared like, 'What's wrong with the baby?' And the baby was just limping, just lying there. Her mouth was black," said witness Karen Starr.

Starr said she was on her way to a doctor's appointment in the same block when she noticed a woman coming out of the Sister's Childcare Center with what appeared to be a lifeless baby girl.

"And she was giving the baby mouth to mouth and I said, 'Is the baby ok?' And she said, 'No, the baby's not breathing.' So I dialed 911," said Starr.

She said the worker then started walking with the baby toward Temple University Hospital, apparently in a state of shock.

"And I was pushing her, pushing her. I said 'Run, run.' She wouldn't run," said Starr. "The emergency room was right there. She wouldn't run."

Starr said at that point a man grabbed the baby from her and rushed inside the emergency room, but it was too late.

The baby was pronounced dead at 2:45 p.m.

Police are calling the death suspicious and the Special Victims Unit is the lead on the case.

Crime scene investigators were combing the scene for potential evidence.

The sign on the front window says the center is a state licensed facility.

Parents were allowed to go inside the day care center one by one to pick up their children.

Action News spoke with some who said they've never had a problem.

"They was good to the kids, I don't know what happened," said parent Said Jalon. "There's good people here."

"They're good staff, I mean, nothing ever went wrong at this day care," said grandmother Patina David.

Police said they are interviewing day care workers and relatives of the 10-month-old baby girl.

A medical examiner will determine the cause and manner of death.

So far, no one has been charged with a crime.