Hillsborough woman faces murder charge in infant’s death, deputies say

A 26-year-old Wimauma woman has been arrested in connection to the death of a baby in her care, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

The infant was brought to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg on April 17, Hillsborough Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Amanda Granit said. The baby was unresponsive and had trauma injuries.

Hospital officials contacted authorities. Hillsborough detectives interviewed Haley Barclay that day and said she admitted she had shaken the infant on April 12 and April 13.

Barclay was arrested and booked into the Falkenburg Road Jail on felony charges of aggravated child abuse and aggravated child neglect on April 17, records show.

The baby died Friday, and on Monday, the Pinellas-Pasco Medical Examiner’s Office ruled its death a homicide, the Hillsborough Sheriff’s Office said.

Barclay also now faces a charge of first-degree felony murder while engaged in aggravated child abuse. Jail records show she is being held without bail.

A Hillsborough Sheriff’s Office spokesperson declined to comment on Barclay’s relationship to the baby, citing Marsy’s Law.

In a news release Monday, the agency said, “The HCSO Child Protective Investigations unit is involved in sheltering Barclay’s additional children.”