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A 26-year-old nurse has been arrested on child abuse charges after several infants had “unexplainable fractures” at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond, VA. Henrico’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) had been recently closed amid the ongoing investigation.
According to the Henrico County Sheriff’s Office, Erin Elizabeth Strotman, a former Henrico employee, was arrested Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, eight days after the Richmond facility announced it would no longer admit premature babies into the NICU.
According to Henrico Doctor’s Hospital, in November and December of 2024, three infants in the NICU had fractured bones, and while the hospital said that sometimes happens with premature babies, these incidents were similar to four other cases about a year earlier, in the summer of 2023.
Out of caution, the hospital said it notified relevant oversight agencies and the children’s families and would conduct an internal investigation.
“It was intentional, it was child abuse”
Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, 26, faces charges of malicious wounding and felony child abuse in connection to an incident that occurred in November, according to police.https://t.co/a7jg0gqT9V
— Henrico Citizen (@HenricoCitizen) January 3, 2025
Tori and Dominique Hackey’s son Noah’s leg fractured while in Henrico’s NICU in 2023. Henrico’s Department of Social Services eventually sent the Hackeys a letter telling them an official investigation into what happened to their son determined “level 1 for physical abuse of Noah by an employee by the Henrico Doctor’s Hospital NICU.” Virginia law dictates three levels of child abuse or neglect ranging from minimal to severe, with level one being the most severe. A suspect had not been determined at that time.
“It was intentional, it was child abuse, it was the most severe level that it can be,” Noah’s father, Dominique, told Virginia news outlet WTVR. “That definitely opened our eyes to it because nobody had said that before,” he said.
After Strotman’s arrest, HCA Virginia Health System said in a statement, “We are both shocked and saddened by this development in the investigation and are focused on continuing to care for our patients and providing support to our colleagues who have been deeply and personally impacted by this investigation.”
“We are grateful to those colleagues who have dedicated their professional lives to the care and safety of our patients, as well as to law enforcement and the other agencies who have worked aggressively and tirelessly with us on this investigation,” HCA added.
The investigation continues as officials work to determine Strotman’s relationship to the earlier abuse cases
BREAKING NEWS🚨
Nurse arrested after multiple babies suffered horrific injuries at Virginia NICU, forcing it to closeErin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, 26, has been charged with malicious wounding and felony child abuse over the incidents at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond,… pic.twitter.com/rMRUEkbMwP
— SANTINO (@MichaelSCollura) January 3, 2025
WTVR says Strotman was placed on administrative leave in 2023. Strotman was one of two Henrico staff members to have had direct contact with all of the children affected, and unlike the other employee, Strotman, who had been recently hired, was most directly involved in their care.
However, the hospital said at that time it could not prove Strotman was involved, and it’s unclear when Strotman’s administrative leave ended or when she returned to work. After her arrest, Becker’s Hospital Review confirmed Strotman was no longer employed at Henrico’s.
It’s also unclear if Strotman has been charged with all the fractures that happened at Henrico’s, including Noah Hackey’s 2023 incident. Virginia police said in a news release, “Ms. Strotman faces charges of malicious wounding and felony child abuse in connection to an incident that occurred in November 2024.”
According to the statement, police were “reviewing dozens of videos from inside the NICU. As previously mentioned, detectives are re-examining the 2023 and 2024 cases as part of this broader investigation.”
“We appreciate the families’ and public’s patience as we work as thoroughly and expeditiously as possible to investigate every piece of evidence in connection to these cases,” the statement added.