An Indiana woman convicted of neglecting her infant daughter, who was found unresponsive on a bedroom floor, will serve just 40 additional days behind bars.
A Marion County judge sentenced 35-year-old Kristina Gensheimer to 910 days in prison. However, because she received credit for 760 days already served and had another 110 days suspended, her remaining active jail time totals a little over a month. Last month, a jury convicted Gensheimer of Level 6 felony child neglect, which was a lesser charge than her initial counts.
The case began on the morning of August 25, 2024, when Indianapolis police and emergency crews responded to a call about an unresponsive baby at a home on Congress Avenue. First responders discovered Gensheimer’s 4-month-old daughter, Emma, showing “no signs of life.” The infant was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition, where she was later pronounced dead.
According to police reports, Gensheimer told investigators she woke up on her bedroom floor and found her daughter lying on her back, cold and limp with purple lips. Responding officers noted the child had a heavily soiled diaper. Medical staff found no external signs of trauma on the infant, aside from a severe diaper rash. An autopsy later concluded that Emma died of “sudden unexplained death of an infant, with intrinsic and extrinsic factors,” citing unsafe sleep conditions including co-sleeping with her mother and falling from an adult-sized bed.
Investigative records revealed that Emma had been sleeping in bed with Gensheimer rather than in her bassinet for weeks leading up to her death. Gensheimer admitted to authorities that she used heroin, methamphetamine, and nicotine vapes “daily” while pregnant. Because of this, Emma was born six weeks premature and was in withdrawal at birth.
When questioned about the morning of the incident, Gensheimer stated she woke up at 6 a.m. to feed her daughter a bottle, after which she took GHB, a central nervous system depressant often referred to as “liquid ecstasy.” She then went back to sleep, later waking up to find the child on the floor.
Interviews conducted by investigators with people close to the family revealed that Emma had been running a fever and acting fussy in the days preceding her death. Following the investigation, Gensheimer was arrested and formally charged with neglect.
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