By DONNA THORNTON, Editor
An Albertville woman pled guilty to a charge of Aggravated Child Abuse of a Child Less than 6 as she was set to face trial for causing serious injuries to her two-year-old daughter, according to Marshall County District Attorney Jennifer Bray.
Carmen Casanova, 33, entered a blind plea, meaning there was no agreed-upon sentence offered.
When she comes before Circuit Judge Christopher Abel for sentencing Jan. 5, 2026, her penalty could fall anywhere within the 10-99 years or life sentence range for the Class A felony, at the judge’s discretion.
“Our office will request that Judge Abel give the defendant the maximum life sentence,” Bray, who prosecuted the case with Assistant District Attorney Adam Culbert said. “Once he sees the evidence that will be presented at the sentencing hearing, we are confident he will,” she said.
According to the district attorney’s office, “the evidence at trial would have shown that on November 23, 2022, the two-year-old victim was in the care of her mother, the defendant in this case. While in the care of the defendant, the victim became purple in color, eyes closed, limp, and completely unresponsive.
The state planned to call several witnesses who would testify Casanova gave several differing accounts of what happened that morning. Generally, she told medical personnel and law enforcement that around 9 a.m. the child was on the top tier of the three-tier bunk bed.
Casanova told authorities she went to check on her crying four-month-old, leaving the two-year-old.
“She told various versions of what state the victim was in when she returned to the room, but nonetheless, she said the victim was dizzy but up and moving,” Bray said in a press release. “She stated she assumed the victim fell off the bunk bed.”
Casanova didn’t call 911; she waited about an hour until – by her own admission – the child was blue and not breathing before calling 911.
The Albertville Fire Department were there within minutes and immediately began care for the child.
“Paramedics from the Albertville Fire Department would have told the jury that they noticed bruising in various parts of the child’s body, some of which appeared to be older, as well as fresh injuries to the child’s mouth and nose.
“They realized instantly that a rapid transport to Marshall Medical Center South (MMCS) would be this baby’s best hope for survival,” Bray related. “The victim was transported to MMCS where she was in critical condition. She remained in critical condition while being airlifted to Children’s of Alabama in Birmingham.
“The two-year-old child suffered from bruises and abrasions all over her body, a busted lip and bloody nose, a traumatic brain injury normally caused by choking and blunt force, and swelling around the ligaments in her neck,” according to the prosecutor.
“The victim endured two life-saving brain surgeries, a blood transfusion, and countless other medical tests, procedures, and therapies,” Bray said.
The state planned to call doctors from the UAB Department of Pediatrics Child Abuse Division, who provided the expert opinion that the victim’s injuries could not have been sustained from a simple fall onto a carpeted floor.
“With the combination of these injuries and history given, it was clear to medical staff that this two-year-old was choked, that these injuries were inflicted upon her in a violent and severe manner, and that almost immediately upon becoming injured, the victim would have been unresponsive,” Bray said.
“Our office prepared to call several witnesses to tell the jury what they observed about the defendant’s demeanor on the day her daughter was hospitalized. The testimony from all of these witnesses would have been that the Defendant appeared to be nonchalant or unconcerned about the status of her child, that she never asked for status updates about the child, and never begged to be with the child.
“A social worker from MMCS would have testified that the defendant refused to see her daughter in the hospital. She would have stated that herself and doctors explained to the mother the critical condition of this child and urged her to spend time with the child and be at the child’s bedside until she got airlifted to Children’s.
“However, upon arriving at MMCS well after other family members, the defendant stated she did not want to see the child and she wanted to go home,” Bray said.” Those were the defendant’s own words while her two-year-old baby was lying in a hospital bed fighting for her life, all alone.
“Lastly, our office planned to call a friend and a family member of the defendant’s about statements she made in the days after the victim was abused. The friend who drove the defendant to Children’s that night would have testified that after going back and seeing the child, the defendant came back into the waiting room and stated ‘I don’t like her, but I didn’t hit her that hard.’
“We expected the family member to testify that about a week after this incident, the defendant took a lot of pills in a presumed suicide attempt and said she knew she was going to jail, which caused this family member to ask questions. When asked why she was attempting suicide and why she was going to jail if this was just an accident, the defendant responded that she had hit the victim on the head in the past and she admitted to choking the victim in the past, although she stopped short of admitting to hurting her on November 23rd.
“Further, we expected this family member to testify that on that same day, the defendant was saying things such as ‘it’s her fault; and ‘she’s the reason I went to jail and my girls got taken away’ referring to the victim.
“And finally, we expected evidence to show the defendant had the motive to commit this crime. In October 2020 when the victim was born, the victim and mother tested positive for opiates, which caused the victim and siblings to be or remain in foster care and for the defendant to be arrested for Chemical Endangerment.
“For most of the victim’s life, from birth until about 4 months before she sustained these injuries, she was in foster care. However, against DHR’s recommendation, in July 2022, a judge granted the defendant full custody of all of her children.
“Just four months later, the victim was in a hospital fighting for her life,” the prosecution said.
“We’re happy to report that today the victim is a thriving and happy five-year-old who was adopted by her foster parents. She still suffers from lingering issues from the trauma she endured, but all things considered, she is doing well. Our office wants to thank the Albertville Fire Department, the Albertville Police Department particularly Officer (Gilbert) Lucero and Detective (Greg) Plunkett, medical staff, and DHR Case Worker Laquitta Lymon for all their hard work on such a difficult case. We understand the toll it takes on these first responders to see a precious two-year-old in such a devastating state, and we thank them for their life-saving work.”
A jury had been empaneled to hear the case Tuesday (Oct. 28) the state was ready to proceed when Casanova informed the judge she wanted to change her plea to guilty.
Carmen Casanova, 33, entered a blind plea, meaning there was no agreed-upon sentence offered.
