A Lake Wales woman has been charged with manslaughter in the death of her 2-year-old son, after she threw him against a wall because she couldn’t get him to fall asleep.
Cristina Speed, 32, of the 4700 block of Club Circle in Lake Wales, has been arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter in the death of her son, 2-year-old Sty’zjon Alston. She has also been charged with one count of aggravated child abuse in the critical injury of the toddler.
Speed, who was trying to sleep having worked a night shift on Friday, told her sister and brother-in-law she was having trouble getting the boy to fall asleep and was encouraged to bring the toddler to their home.
Her brother-in-law noted the child’s injuries – vomiting and lethargic behavior and Cristina told them she had become overwhelmed with Sty’zjon and had thrown him on the bed and up against a wall. The kid was airlifted to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital due to the severity of his injuries.
According to Speed’s arrest affidavit, she told investigators that she was angry and laid Sty’zjon “very firmly” on the bed several times, but denied shaking him. She also said she spanked him three times. She told detectives she contacted her sister and said she was “going to smash his face in.”
Doctors at Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital found clear signs of physical abuse, consistent with being shaken and/or experiencing blunt force trauma.
Speed was taken into custody on Saturday, May 9th, by the Orlando Police Department at Arnold Palmer Hospital, and booked into the Orange County Jail.
Sty’zjon succumbed to his injuries on Sunday. His body will be delivered to the Polk County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
Speed has no prior arrests in Polk County, and no other children. She told investigators that she recently moved to the area from Virginia, and serves in the U.S. Air Force Reserves.
