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Background: The day care center in Red Bay, Ala., where a 4-month-old passed away in 2022 (Google Maps). Inset: Angelene Chamblee (Franklin County Sheriff”s Office).
An Alabama woman who owns the day care center where a baby girl died after being put face down for a nap faces nearly 30 felony charges.
Angelene Chamblee, aged 49, owns the Tiny Tigers day care center in Red Bay, where 4-month-old Autumn Wells passed away in 2022. This occurred after an employee put her face-down for a nap and subsequently left her unattended. That employee, Payton Gann, was found guilty of manslaughter in connection with Autumn’s death, while three other women involved accepted plea deals.
According to local CBS affiliate WHNT, Chamblee initially faced six counts of child care act violation and two counts of forgery, but prosecutors opted not to proceed with prosecution in June. After six months, the Franklin County District Attorney announced there was new evidence, resulting in Chamblee facing 27 felony charges relating to Autumn’s death.
Chamblee was apprehended on Wednesday and charged with one count of manslaughter, 18 counts of possession of a forged instrument, two counts of forgery, and six counts of operating a day care center without a license. She posted bond and was released on the same day.
On March 9, 2022, Gann, alongside Madison McCalpin, was the Tiny Tigers employee tasked with watching Autumn. Gann put Autumn on her stomach on a Boppy pillow and left the facility “for an extended period of time.” Upon Gann’s return, the baby was non-responsive.
Autumn was transported to a hospital and declared dead. The medical examiner determined that based on Autumn’s body temperature at the hospital, she had likely been deceased for a minimum of two hours.
McCalpin, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in exchange for her testimony against Gann, said that Gann and Gann’s mother told others to lie about where Autumn died. Teia Gann and Hannah Grace Letson were both charged with tampering with a witness and took plea deals.
According to a motion obtained by WHNT, the Franklin County District Attorney said that witness interviews and evidence uncovered as they prepared for Payton Gann’s trial merited another presentation of Chamblee’s alleged involvement in Autumn’s death to a grand jury.
Red Bay is a city in northeast Alabama along the state’s border with neighboring Mississippi.
