Parents accused of murder after four-month-old suffocates to death

A US couple have been indicted on murder charges after their four-month-old baby suffocated to death under a doona in a hotel room in February this year.

William Herring, 42, and Brianna Brochhausen, 23, were in a hotel room in Springfield County when they allegedly placed their son Hunter on the bed, face down, and covered his entire body with a doona. The New Jersey couple then allegedly went outside to smoke cigarettes, returning 10 minutes later to discover the infant wasn’t breathing and was unresponsive.

Investigators claim the parents were frustrated their son wouldn’t stop crying, and decided to put him on a ‘time out.’

Hunter was rushed to hospital, and spent his last weeks on life support before dying on March 3.

An autopsy revealed he died from “complications of suffocation”, and his death was ruled a homicide.

The couple were originally arrested for suspicion of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. The indictment supporting the arrest was handed down by a grand jury on May 16.

New Jersey State Police Superintendent Col. Patrick Callahan told NBC 10, “the thoughtless actions of these individuals ended up costing a defenceless four-month-old infant his life.”

“I commend the detectives of our Homicide South Unit and Criminal Investigation Office for their commitment and dedication to finding justice for Baby Hunter.”

It was unclear Wednesday if Herring and Brochhausen had entered pleas to the charges they face.