Couple Charged With Child Neglect After Baby Falls From Balcony

PORT RICHEY, FL — A Port Richey couple has been arrested after being accused of failing to supervise their 14-month-old child who fell off a second-story balcony.

David Gomez-Diaz, 23, and Christina Jiminez-Gomez, 24, have been charged with child neglect and obstruction.

According to the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, deputies were call to the Windtree Apartments on Robilina Road in Port Richey over the weekend when a 14-month-old baby fell from a balcony at the apartment complex. The child was flown to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa to be evaluated for possible internal injuries.

Deputies said there was a large hole in a screen on the balcony and the sliding-glass door was open.

Initially, Jiminez-Gomez said she saw the child fall off the balcony but didn't call 911 because the child didn't appear to be hurt. She later changed her story and said she didn't see the child fall because she was cooking.

Gomez-Diaz initially told deputies that he wasn't at home at the time. He, too, changed his story and said he was home but didn't see the baby go out on the balcony because there were a number of children running around and playing in the apartment, according to deputies. He said he believed one of the older children had opened the sliding-glass door.

Deputies said he eventually altered his story again, saying he had just returned from work and walked in to find the sliding-glass door open. He then noticed the hole in the screen and said he looked through the hole but didn't see the baby. Eventually, a neighbor brought him the baby, but he said he didn't call 911 because the baby didn't appear injured.

A witness in a nearby apartment, however, told deputies that she was sitting outside when she heard a thud followed by a baby crying. She ran outside and found the baby lying a couple of feet from a pond, crying hysterically.

She told deputies that she ran over to the baby who was covered with dirt and limping. She looked toward the apartment complex and saw the apartment with the torn screen. She picked up the baby, took him to the apartment and handed him to Gomez-Diaz when he answered the door. She said he grabbed the baby out of her arms and closed the door.

Concerned that the baby might have internal injuries, the neighbor called 911.