Home day care worker convicted of child neglect in death of 7-week-old girl

Claudette Mitchell



MILWAUKEE -- A woman accused in the death of a 7-week-old baby girl that happened at a day care near 77th and Villard in August of 2017 has been convicted.

Claudette Mitchell, 38, on Tuesday, Sept. 11 pleaded guilty to one count of neglecting a child, consequence is death. She will be sentenced on Oct. 25.

Savaiyah Reid was found unresponsive at the day care on Aug. 22, 2017. A criminal complaint indicates emergency responders noticed blood in Reid's airway, a bruise in the shape of a thumbprint on her chest and scratches and bruising on her head.

The complaint lays out the timeline:


    Day care near 77th and Villard



    Savaiyah's mother and grandmother rushed to the day care.

    "And when I got in and asked her 'was Savaiyah OK,' and she says 'no, they're still working on her,"' said Sherry Green, Savaiyah's grandmother.

    Savaiyah Reid





    The Milwaukee County medical examiner conducted an autopsy on Reid. Officials ruled the infant died from blunt force trauma to the head.

    The complaint says Reid "had multiple contusions and abrasions to the right and left side of the face, the forehead, nose, and cheek. Reid’s body also had bruising to the abdomen. An internal examination revealed multiple, too numerous to count, skull fractures."

    Child death near 77th and Villard



    According to the criminal complaint, Mitchell said she was the only adult who had cared for the infant the day Reid died.

    "Nothing is going to bring her back, but I want justice for my granddaughter," said Green.

    According to the complaint, there were eight other children at the home of the time of the incident. Two of them, an 11-month-old and a 5-year-old, were in the same bedroom as Savaiyah Reid.