HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – It has been nearly a year since a baby girl was found dead inside a hotel drawer, and her family continues to push for answers.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office reported that the tragedy occurred at a Days Inn off Rancho Mission Drive near Mission Bend on May 26, 2024. No one has been charged with a crime since the tragedy.
KPRC 2 reporter Corley Peel spoke with Brookelynn’s parents who both say they are innocent and her great-grandmother, who is demanding justice.
Luann Simon, Brookelynn’s great-grandmother, described the baby as a bright-eyed girl who had only graced the earth for three months.
“That baby didn’t deserve to die like that,” Simon said. “I never had the chance to hold her.”
On that fateful day, Simon rushed to the Days Inn in Mission Bend, where Brookelynn’s body was discovered in a drawer inside a hotel room. Simon noted that Brookelynn’s parents and her older brother, who was about 1 year old, had been staying at the hotel. Brookelynn’s mother is Simon’s granddaughter. Simon shared information from Brookelynn’s death certificate.
“The coroner’s office has ruled it a homicide due to suffocation, due to her being enclosed in a dresser drawer,” Simon stated.
Corley spoke with Brookelynn’s mother on the phone. She said Brookelynn was being kept in an open drawer in the hotel because she tended to roll over. She explained that she fell asleep while Brookelynn’s father was giving the baby a bath. When she woke up, the father was gone, and she assumed Brookelynn was with him. She mentioned she had never heard a baby cry in the room and the drawer was closed. When the father returned from the store without Brookelynn, he opened the closed drawer where they found Brookelynn unresponsive.
Corley spoke with Brookelynn’s father who insisted he had nothing to do with his daughter’s death, stating he was not present when it happened.
The mother reported that she has been cooperative with Child Protective Services (CPS) and passed required drug tests after drugs were found in the hotel room. Simon expressed her frustration, stating she is still waiting for the investigation to reveal the truth.
“For them to walk into a crime scene with a dead baby and drugs in the room, no one gets arrested, no charges have been filed, and it’s been almost a year,” Simon lamented. “We can’t even really put this baby to rest because nobody’s paid for this death. Nobody has taken blame for this.”
During the interview, Simon’s white horses surrounded walked up, symbolizing the peaceful blessings she typically shared with her grandchildren.
“It hurts really bad because she (Brookelynn) would have had just as much opportunity and such a good life,” Simon reflected. “I want justice for this baby,” she added.
Brookelynn’s father was arrested on unrelated warrants after the incident but he was released.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office sent KPRC2 the following statement:
“This is an ongoing investigation and has not been presented to the District Attorney’s Office. The release of any details pertaining to this case may hinder the investigation. Upon completion, the case will be presented to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office Child Fatality Unit who has the sole responsibility of determining whether any criminal charges will be accepted,” Senior Deputy Thomas M Gilliland.