Shanai Thomas

(Courtesy of Tulsa County Jail)

TULSA, Okla. — A woman is facing charges of child neglect after police say her child was found dead after the two were co-sleeping.

In affidavit, the Tulsa Police Department (TPD) said in 2022, Shanai Thomas co-slept with her 4-month-old child while intoxicated. The following morning, the child was dead.

TPD said Thomas abuses alcohol and co-slept with her kid multiple times while being so intoxicated she was passed out and unaware of her surroundings.

On one occasion, TPD was at Thomas’ house and found her passed out on the couch with the child in a compromised breathing position.

TPD said Thomas had been recommended to get substance abuse and mental health treatment, but was not getting it.

According to TPD, when Thomas gets intoxicated, she becomes physically and verbally abusive to the child’s father, Jorge Iglesias.

On that night, Thomas was intoxicated and attacked Iglesias.

Iglesias left the home and left the child in her care.

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According to TPD, Iglesias voiced concerns that Thomas would lay on top of the child while intoxicated, but still left the child in Thomas’ care, knowing the risk.

In the morning, the child was found dead.

In an interview with TPD, Thomas said she was sleeping with the child that night. After finding the child in the morning, she did chest compressions on the child and blew air in the child’s mouth.

Afterwards, Thomas said she drove to her sister’s house to call 911 because she couldn’t find her phone.

Her sister then called 911.

The Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death as Sudden Unexpected Infant Death. However, the manner of death is undetermined as it couldn’t be determined if death was secondary to a viral infection or the unsafe sleeping environment.

TPD said both Thomas’ and Iglesias’ actions resulted in child’s death.

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