IOWA CITY, Iowa – A Davenport woman now faces a charge of attempted murder after she allegedly tried to flush her newborn baby down a toilet.
Ashley Hautzenrader, 22, was accused of trying to flush the baby after she gave birth to it in toilet at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics on Sunday, May 8, 2016.
Police said Hautzenrader told them she did not know she was pregnant, and that she thought the baby was stillborn because it did not cry. After she tried to flush the baby down the toilet, she allegedly put it in a pillowcase and placed it in a trash can before she reportedly cleaned the bathroom and left.
UIHC employees later found the baby, which was alive.
Hautzenrader was initially charged with one misdemeanor count of child endangerment. After her arrest, she was ordered to have no contact with the baby.
Now, she also faces a charge of attempted murder according to court records. Her next court appearance was set for June 9 in Johnson County, Iowa.
