Unattended toddler drowns in pool

Police investigating incident

Friday, July 10, 2009

The mother of Jason Daniel Burke Jr. called authorities at about 8:30 p.m. to report her son missing, but found the 19-month-old in the backyard pool before police arrived at the home in the 4300 block of Middletown Road, according to Diane Richardson, spokeswoman for the Charles County Sheriff's Office.

Jason was unresponsive and was taken to Civista Medical Center in La Plata, where he was pronounced dead, Richardson said.

Before the child drowned, Jason's mother had gone out and left the toddler with his 15-year-old cousin, according to Richardson. The mother told police that she instructed the teen to babysit Jason, who was asleep in a back bedroom at the time, Richardson said.

At some point, the teen left the home to go fishing, according to Richardson.

"It is not clear why he made the decision to leave the house," she said.

The mother tried to call the teen while she was out and couldn't reach him, so she returned home. Jason wasn't in the home when the woman arrived, and she noticed a baby gate had been pushed over, Richardson said.

The woman called police and kept searching for Jason until she found him unconscious in the swimming pool.

"It's a tragic, tragic situation," Richardson said.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death. Police said the death appears to be accidental.

Sheriff's officer S. Fetterolf is investigating.

brodgers@somdnews.com