West Virginia — A West Virginia couple is accused of killing their infant daughter, who died with a lethal amount of ethanol in her system after the defendants allegedly rubbed alcohol on her gums and around her mouth when she became “irritable and fussy.” James Joseph Smith and Angel Talbert were arrested last week and charged with one count each of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, child neglect resulting in death, and conspiracy against the state, according to records.
According to court documents obtained by Law&Crime, at 7:52 a.m. on November 16, 2024, officers from the Braxton County Sheriff’s Department responded to a call about a deceased infant at Braxton County Memorial Hospital, located about 70 miles northeast of Charleston, West Virginia.
Officers arrived approximately 30 minutes later and examined the child, describing her face as “discolored as if the baby had been face down.” Authorities then went to the child’s home on the 1900 block of Tunnel Fork Road in Gassaway to question the parents.
In an interview with detectives, Smith stated that he got up between 4 and 5 a.m. to use the restroom and check on the baby. When Smith looked in the crib, he noticed the infant was facedown and not breathing, so he “immediately” instructed Talbert to call 911.
The couple drove the child to the hospital. An ambulance met them along the way and continued lifesaving procedures until they reached the facility. Unfortunately, the infant could not be revived and was pronounced dead at the hospital at around 5:32 a.m., according to the affidavit.
Talbert corroborated Smith’s story, telling authorities that their daughter was not sick and had no preexisting conditions.
Investigators said the couple’s living conditions were “very poor,” as they “observed roaches crawling in multiple places throughout the home.” The home also lacked running water in the kitchen and bathrooms. Smith showed the officers a spigot in the back room of the house, where he claimed they got their water.
“He stated they would fill up containers and take [them] to the bathroom and kitchen when needed,” according to the waiver.
On April 10, police received the findings from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, which documented the victim’s postmortem examination. According to the report, a test of the infant’s liver tissue yielded a positive result for ethanol, “with a reading of 3.21.” A doctor informed authorities “that 3.21 would be fatal to an infant.”
On April 14, 2025, investigators returned to Smith and Talbert’s home, and the parents agreed to accompany them to the West Virginia State Police Sutton detachment to discuss the postmortem examination results.
“After explaining the results the mother and father stated they didn’t know how the alcohol would be in the child’s liver tissue,” according to the testimony. “Both parents stated that the baby was healthy and was not on any type of prescribed medication or over the counter medication.”
Two days later, authorities allegedly conducted another interview to gain insight into how the alcohol entered the victim’s system.
“During the interview [Talbert] told [investigators] that after the first interview on 04/14/2025 that James Smith told her that he would take alcohol and rub [it] on the infant child’s gums and around her mouth when the infant would get irritable and fussy,” according to the lawsuit. “A short time later James Smith stated that him and [Talbert] would both rub alcohol on the infants gums and they had done it almost everyday for a month prior to the infant death.”
The parents were arrested and taken to the Central Regional Jail, where they are both held without bond.
