Murder Suspect Smothered Crying Baby, Admitted to Past Abuse

The woman accused of murdering a 6-month-old girl last month told investigators she smothered the child to stop its crying and admitted to abusing the infant in the past, according to court documents filed Tuesday.

The suspect, 30-year-old Tiffany Marsha Washington, was watching over 6-month-old Jordynn Taylor on December 28th and called 911 around 2:30 p.m. to report that the child had become unresponsive.

Taylor was taken to DCH Regional Medical Center then airlifted to UAB in critical condition, where medical personnel advised police that the infant's injuries were consistent with abuse and that there was evidence the child had suffered from asphyxiation.

Washington, who was related to the victim but not her mother, was brought in for questioning and allegedly admitted to "smothering and squeezing the infant for an excessive period of time in an attempt to make the infant stop crying."

According to the deposition filed Tuesday, Washington also told investigators that a few weeks prior, she had done the same thing and squeezed 6-month-old Taylor to make her stop crying. Washington allegedly told police the infant became unresponsive then, too, but that she was able to perform CPR and resuscitate the child.

"Washington did not call 911 or seek medical attention for the infant" after the earlier incident, according to the court documents.

Washington was arrested and charged originally with assault and aggravated child abuse, but the assault charge was upgraded to murder after Taylor died on December 30th.

She remained in the Tuscaloosa County Jail Tuesday afternoon on a total bond of $210,000.