Toddler alive after being declared dead in drowning incident. Now, his parents could be charged

Key Points:

• An 18-month-old toddler in a Phoenix suburb was mistakenly declared dead after being found in a backyard pool but was later discovered breathing in the hospital morgue and ultimately survived after being transferred to another hospital.
• Gilbert police are recommending negligence charges against the parents due to unsupervised pool access and a strong odor of marijuana at the home, while the Maricopa County Attorney's Office is reviewing the case.
• Mercy Gilbert Medical Center conducted a thorough review of the care provided, calling the situation heartbreaking, and the medical examiner's team found the child breathing in the cold room, prompting immediate transfer to another hospital.
• The toddler, known as Vincent, is expected to need extensive therapy, and his family has received community support through a GoFundMe campaign; meanwhile, the doctor involved has legal representation stating there is more to the case than publicly reported.
• Experts note that mistaken death declarations are rare, especially in children, and typically result from inexperience or policy failures, emphasizing the complexity of confirming death based on no heartbeat, breathing, or brain activity.