UPDATE: Hamilton mother headed to prison for rolling over, smothering infant daughter

Walden’s grandmother and her defense attorney said she was exposed to drugs. Walden, when given the chance to speak, said she wanted “a chance to do it right.”

The grandmother of Walden’s daughter spoke during the sentencing and said Walden “didn’t make a whole lot of effort to be a mother.”

"If Sara does stay out, it scares me for her other child," she said. "We lost a precious little 3-month-old who didn’t have a chance to ask for help."

INITIAL REPORT

A Hamilton mother is scheduled to be sentenced today for the death of her infant daughter in October 2018.

Saralin Walden, 25, of Jeff Scott Lane, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and child endangering for rolling over on her daughter, Rae’Anna, while she was asleep and smothering her on Oct. 23, 2018.

Last month, Walden pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Butler County Common Pleas Court. She could receive a maximum sentence of 11 years in prison.

Walden has remained housed in the Butler County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond since her indictment in March.

Earlier this year, the defense filed motions related to Walden’s mental state at the time of the incident. In addition to competency, a “not guilty by reason of insanity” plea also was filed.

After reviewing a forensic psychological evaluation, county Common Pleas Judge Charles Pater ruled in June that Walden was competent and the insanity plea would not move forward.

Prosecutors say Walden was using “illegal substances either at the time of or within close proximity to the time of her caring for her child, and passed out and/or fell asleep on top of the infant suffocating the infant,” according to court documents.