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Newly released pictures show what led to arrest of Oviedo mom accused in infant's death

OVIEDO, Fla. — An Oviedo woman accused of killing her infant daughter with a string of holiday lights tried to pin the incident on her 2-year-old son, detectives said.

Documents with new pictures show how investigators disproved Kristen DePasquale's story.

When investigators went into the Covington Street home the night the baby was killed, the Halloween lights DePasquale claimed her son used to strangle his sister were wrapped loosely round a potted plant on a mantle.

A detective noted, “The positioning of the light set appeared inconsistent with a 2-year-old being able to wrap (victim’s) neck with lights. The position of the potted plant would suggest even the slightest bit of resistance or struggle would have caused the plant to fall.”

DePasquale told a 911 dispatcher she was getting in the shower while the children were playing.

Detectives said the shower was dry.

Law enforcement specialist and former Oviedo police chief Chuck Drago said those kinds of inconsistencies usually lead to an arrest.

“Detectives are trained to be very observant of everything and that’s why detectives protect that crime scene with everything they have,” said Drago.

When a detective returned to an Oviedo hospital to ask DePasquale about the holes in her story, her father, a Seminole County deputy, told him to stop interviewing his daughter, a report said.

While emotional, DePasquale said “It’s fine,” but detectives said DePasquale’s father was persistent and aggressive. The detective said the father’s behavior was beginning to dramatically affect the investigation and eventually the detective had to have a uniformed officer remove him from the scene.

Detectives never got DePasquale’s interview and she obtained a lawyer.

A motive for the alleged killing is unclear.

Detectives also discovered shortly before the infant was killed, DePasquale spoke to the children’s father in prison.

DePasquale is currently awaiting trial in Brevard County.

Her trial was moved to Brevard County because her father is a deputy with Seminole County.

Jeff Levkulich

Jeff Levkulich, WFTV.com

Jeff Levkulich joined the Eyewitness News team as a reporter in June 2015.