‘A nightmare’: Mom of 2-year-old who died after falling from window begs for help

HARTFORD, Conn. (WFSB/Gray News) – The mother of a 2-year-old boy who died after he fell out of a window last month said she is making a plea for help.

Tabitha Frank, 34, is set to face a judge Thursday. She is charged with manslaughter and 10 counts of risk of injury to child.

But Frank said she is not a bad mother and that she loved her son – she is just someone who is struggling and needs help.

“That day is a day of a nightmare that I can’t seem to shake loose,” Frank said. “His smile was everything.”

Her 2-year-old son fell out of the third-floor apartment window in Hartford on July 22. He suffered a skull fracture and died two days later at the hospital.

At the time of the toddler’s fatal fall, Frank had left him along with his four other siblings at home while she went to the store to get food and diapers, police said. The five children were between the ages of 2 and 12.

A neighbor told police that the children were consistently left home alone without adult supervision.

Frank said that she loved her son and wasn’t a neglectful mother. She said despite the public perception of Department of Children and Families visits, her children were always taken care of, and her only son was a strong baby boy.

“I never heard ‘You’re a bad mom,’ I never heard, ‘You’re a neglectful mom.’ Or ‘You’re not doing something right.’ I was told constantly by each DCF worker who came to my house ‘You’re doing a good job; you’re doing the best that you can,’” Frank said.

Frank expressed that she feels judgement from the public. She said it’s like having somebody break into her home. She said despite police reports, her home wasn’t the ‘abysmal’ mess they claimed it to be, but as a single parent it was difficult taking care of five children.

An incident report from Hartford police said that the conditions inside Frank’s apartment were filthy and horrendous.

There were swarms of insects, food covered in mold, filth and garbage on the floors, and soiled clothing, police said.

Frank said she is begging for help to give her child a proper burial.

“I’m really not asking, I’m begging for help right now because I would like for him to be buried so that his sister can have somewhere to go, that his ashes are not misplaced,” Frank said.

The family has set up a GoFundMe account to help give the little boy a proper burial.

Vannessa Dorantes, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Children and Families, said resources are available for those who need help. DCF has a 24-hour careline at 1-800-842-2288.

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