A 35-year-old woman has been charged with second degree murder in the death of her one-year-old son, who died Monday after being found unresponsive inside a Midtown restaurant. NY1's Rocco Vertuccio filed this report.
Latisha Fisher, 35, cried but said nothing as police took her downtown Tuesday morning to book her on a charge of second degree murder for the death of her own son.
Sources tell NY1 Fisher had plenty to say Monday afternoon when she was found in the bathroom of 5 Boro Burger on West 36th Street with her one-year-old son, Gavriel.
She said the devil made me do it and she was trying to get the boy to sleep.
Investigators say Fisher was locked in the bathroom with the boy for an extended period of time and that employees and customers became worried when the woman refused to come out.
When they finally forced their way inside they found the boy sitting on his mom's lap and foaming at the mouth.
By the time emergency crews arrived, Gavriel was unresponsive. They rushed him to Bellevue Hospital but it was too late. Sources say it appears the boy was suffocated.
Fisher has been arrested several times, and pleaded guilty to a 2011 assault in which she slashed someone's head, arm and ear with a steak knife. She avoided prison by completing two years of treatment in a city program for offenders with mental illness.
One of Fisher's neighbors on the Lower East Side told NY 1 Fisher had some problems but appeared to be getting better .
"It was in the past, some years ago, there were some issues with her family and her and stuff like that but lately, nothing. She’s been happy,” said neighbor Carolyn Lawson. “I guess it’s true what they say: you never know what a person is going through, only what you see on the outside.”
Another neighbor described Fisher as crazy and that everyone is afraid of her.
The city's child welfare agency is also investigating. The Administration for Children's Services says it's critical for all New Yorkers to report suspected signs of child abuse and neglect.