Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty for Miami Mom Who Drowned Autistic Son
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Prosecutors are eyeing a death penalty against a Miami mom accused of killing her autistic son by drowning.

Prosecutor Gail Levin said her office had filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty against Patricia Ripley, 45, during a Zoom hearing on Thursday.

A grand jury indicted Ripley on Wednesday. A first-degree murder charged was filed against her for allegedly killing her nine-year-old son, who had autism.

Her son, Alejandro, was also non-verbal, according to an NBC Miami News report. Ripley's attorney said she would plead not guilty against the charges filed against her.

Police said that Ripley had taken her son to a lake behind a housing complex near 103rd Avenue and Kendall Drive last May 21. Ripley then attempted to leave him in the water to drown.

Authorities said the video footage confirmed that Ripley pushed her son into the water and left him there by himself.

A witness told NBC that they saw a person run into the lake to rescue the drowning boy. That was after the neighbors had screamed for help.

Police said that Ripley took another attempt that same evening. Ripley then succeeded in killing her son at another location, a golf course canal, where police discovered his body on May 22.

An Amber Alert had been released for the boy after police said Ripley told investigators that two men had abducted her son.

Miami Herald reported that Ripley first called 911 to report that two Black men took her son near a West Kendal Home Depot. The next day the body was found about four miles from where the alleged abduction occurred.

Reports said that the investigators were dubious of Ripley's changing accounts of what happened. Investigators then found that the suspect was caught on camera pushing the boy into the canal.

According to an arrest report, Ripley later admitted that she had led the boy to the canal and said that the boy would be going to a better place.

Authorities said that the murder was well-planned, citing the attempt to drown the boy, only to be saved by a Samaritan.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in earlier reports that Ripley brought the boy to a different canal, and this time there was no one there to save him.

Ripley did not appear during Thursday's short court hearing. As she is now facing a capital offense, prosecutors said that Ripley should have lawyers certified to handle death penalty cases.

"We would need to have Miss Ripley here," prosecutor Gail Levine told the court, as reported by the Miami Herald.

Ripley's defense lawyer, Suzy Ribero-Ayala, said she has only seen her client through virtual meetings. In-person jail visits are still not allowed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Ripley is also charged with a host of other felonies and is awaiting trial in jail.

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