Man Accused Of Drowning 11-Month-Old Girl In East Huntington Will Stand Trial
WESTMORELAND COUNTY (KDKA) -- A man accused of drowning an 11-month-old girl he was supposed to be babysitting will stand trial.
Derrick Bass was in court Wednesday for a preliminary hearing, and all charges were held for the man accused of killing 11-month-old Niomie Miller in East Huntington.
According to the police, Bass was watching Miller while her mother was at work.
When the mother returned home July 14, she called police after midnight to say she found the girl covered in blankets in her playpen.
Police said Miller was crying and Bass drowned her.
Bass then fled to Cleveland, Ohio, where he was arrested and extradited back to Pennsylvania.
In court Wednesday, it was revealed Bass told investigators he found the child barely breathing and performed CPR.
When CPR didn't work, he put Miller's face under the faucet in the bathtub and turned the water on.
When that didn't work, Bass tried CPR again before leaving, investigators said.
Bass never called 9-1-1.
Investigators said, based on social media messaging, Miller may have been in the playpen for about seven hours before she was found by her mother.
Autopsy results revealed in court said the baby's lungs and airway were filled with water.
Bass' defense attorney, as well as the child's mother, declined to comment Wednesday.
Bass is charged with homicide, abuse of a corpse, theft, receiving stolen property and tampering with evidence.
No trial date is set, and Bass in is the Westmoreland County Jail without bond.
