The death of a 4-month-old baby found inside a Central Alameda dumpster was caused by blunt trauma, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office said Monday.
The female infant, identified as Luna Babers, was found in the area of 52nd Street and Holmes Avenue. Police said a woman was taking out the trash at the Pueblo del Rio housing complex when she discovered the baby.
The infant was taken to a hospital, but she later died.
The medical examiner ruled the baby’s death a homicide.
The baby’s mother, 19-year-old Takiyah Babers, was charged with one count of murder and one felony count of assault on a child causing death, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Babers was being held on $2 million bail as of Thursday.
Community members held a vigil in South Los Angeles, paying their respects to the young life lost.
“She didn’t have to do this. She did not have to do this,” Bianca Jones, Babers’ foster sister, said. “I am so angry. I am so angry.”
The baby, who was identified by relatives as Luna, was cared for by Jones’ parents, Laura Lacey and Herman Johnson. The two, distraught by the heartbreaking tragedy, also expressed their devastation.
“I just miss my baby,” Lacey said. “I miss my grandbaby. My whole house is her, my whole room … I go home, and she is not there.”