The mother of the girl, now 11, is speaking out in defense of her daughter, whom she calls "beautiful" and "intelligent."
The mother of a little girl accused of killing a 6-month-old baby at a day care in Wisconsin is defending her daughter, who she says would never have intentionally injured the little boy.
The girl was just 10 years old when she allegedly dropped the baby boy on Oct. 30 of last year. According to prosecutors, the child hit his head and began crying, at which point the girl started panicking and stomped on the baby to quiet him. The injuries proved to be fatal and the little boy was pronounced dead two days later, on Nov. 1.
The girl, now 11, is not being identified because of her age but was charged as an adult with first-degree homicide with intent, a felony, making her one of the youngest ever to be charged with such a serious crime.
Her mother spoke out, for the first time, to Inside Edition, sharing personal photos and videos of the little girl.
"There is no way it was done in any type of intentional way," she told Inside Edition. Asked if she remembered anything her daughter told her, the mom replied, "That it was, just that it was an accident. And you know what? I believe my daughter."
The mother said she believes her daughter has been painted as a monster and described her as "beautiful, intelligent [and] smart."
"At 10, your brain can't process half the stuff that me or you or anybody else can," the mom said.
She added that the girl suffers from mental illness and the family had tried to get her help prior to the incident, but she was denied because she was too young. Instead, as a last resort, the family said they placed her in a county-licensed program at a day care center for three days a week.
It was there that the baby lost his life last year. Had the girl been given the help her family said she needs, the mother said her daughter "wouldn't have ever been there" and the little boy's death "wouldn't have happened."
Following her arrest last year, the girl was held at a juvenile detention facility for two months. Inside Edition was given a look inside to see what life was like for her, which you can see in the video above.
Now, she's being held in the adult unit at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute four hours from home. She is being held on a $50,000 cash bond.
"She's the youngest person there," her mother said. "She's 11 years old with women 40 years old and over."
The mom also shared some of her daughter's most cherished items and spoke about her dreams for the future.
"She wants to be a doctor," the mother said. "She wants to save people."
While she has compassion for the baby's family, she just wants her daughter back.
She added: "She wants to go home."
The mother is raising money on GoFundMe to try to bring her daughter home.
Inside Edition asked the county Department of Human Services why a troubled child was allowed in the same facility as a 6-month-old in day care, but they did not respond. The day care owner had no comment. For now, the little girl has been declared not competent to stand trial. If she later is able to understand the circumstances in which she finds herself, officials say the case will resume.
Her next court hearing is Oct. 11.
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