Indianola woman arrested after 7-month-old child’s death

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(Photo: Warren County Jail)

by Alex Kirkpatrick, Digital Editor

INDIANOLA, Iowa — An Indianola woman is being held at the Warren County Jail following an investigation into the death of her 7-month-old child, Indianola police said.

Tori Marie Bittner, 19, was arrested last Wednesday and is charged with child endangerment resulting in death, a Class B felony.

Indianola medical emergency personnel were sent Sunday on calls of a child in “respiratory distress.”

The child, identified as Cody Seals, was flown to Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines and died the next day.

Authorities said Friday that Bittner was living with the child’s biological father. Bittner admitted to causing the child’s injuries, according to court documents.

Cody’s father told Des Moines television station KCCI that Bittner had admitted to violently shaking the infant, but he was too distraught to go into further detail.

Bittner’s mother also told KCCI over the phone that her daughter is innocent and was coerced into a confession, but Indianola police negate the claim.

An autopsy was conducted by the Polk County medical examiner.

Bittner is being held at the Warren County Jail on $500,000 cash-only bail.

The Indianola Police Department and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation assisted in the investigation.