HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Former NICU nurse Erin Strotman will remain in jail as the court waits for the findings of a mental health evaluation, Henrico County Circuit Court Judge Richard S. Wallerstein Jr. decided Wednesday morning.
Strotman appeared in person for the 50-minute bond appeal hearing after a Henrico judge denied her release last week citing safety concerns.
Strotman's attorney, Jeff Everhart, said the results of a mental health evaluation performed at the jail weren’t sent to him in time for Wednesday’s hearing.
Judge Wallerstein suggested that Everhart set up a psychological evaluation by a third party and to hear those results at a hearing scheduled for next month.
Strotman is accused of causing multiple fractures to a 5-month-old baby boy on Nov. 10, 2024, at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital.
WATCH RELATED COVERAGE: Surveillance video shows nurse abusing baby in Virginia hospital's NICU (Jan. 10)
Prosecutor Allison Martin said two additional babies were found with fractures the following month, but no additional charges have been filed against Strotman yet.
The first baby was found on Dec. 17, 2024 with multiple fractures.
The second baby was found on Dec. 24, 2024 with a rib fracture.
Martin said the Commonwealth’s child abuse expert, Dr. Robin Foster with the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, dated those fractures as occurring during the time when Strotman would have been providing care to all three babies.
Martin noted that the recent fractures bear similarities to incidents involving four other infants at the same NICU between Aug. 5 and Sept. 18, 2023.
Strotman was placed on paid administrative leave in 2023 after the hospital conducted an internal investigation into the initial four cases.
Martin said she returned to work in the NICU on Sept. 17, 2024.
Child Protective Services and Henrico Police also investigated but were unable to identify a perpetrator.
Martin said their investigation was “unfortunately delayed” and encountered “problems" because the hospital did not report the fractures to CPS until September 21st of 2023.
Martin said Strotman posed a threat to herself and others when she argued against bond.
Text messages revealed
Prosecutor Allison Martin shared text messages from Strotman that showed evidence of Strotman’s alleged mental health and substance abuse issues.
In one of the text messages from Oct. 21, 2023, Strotman stated she had been pacing, felt “up like I did cocaine again,” but she had not, and had self-diagnosed herself with borderline personality disorder. She wrote, “I feel manic. It takes everything in me not to start sh—,” according to Martin.
On the day before she was arrested, Martin said Strotman wrote in a text, “My therapist's office is closed, I am five seconds away from checking myself into crisis.”
Martin said Strotman sees a psychiatrist and counselor and takes two medications for anxiety and depression.
Judge Wallerstein said those details concerned him when taking into consideration her bond status.
However, Everhart said his client is not a flight risk and would be safer in her parent's gated community. He mentioned Strotman is 26 years old and doesn't have a criminal record.
He said she intended to visit the Henrico Police Department to talk to investigators but was arrested a day before.
"I feel anger"
Dominique Hackey's son, Noah, was one of the babies injured at the hospital in September of 2023. He said he felt the need to be in the courtroom for Strotman's bond appeal hearing.
“I feel anger that I have to be here to show up for my son, for the rest of the 2023 babies because somebody abused our children,” Hackey told reporters after court.
Strotman was placed on paid administrative leave in 2023 after the hospital conducted an internal investigation into the initial cases. Prosecutors said CPS and Henrico Police investigated but were unable to identify a single perpetrator.
Now, investigators have reopened Noah’s case.
“I'm confident in [Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney] Shannon [Taylor], Allison, and their ability to be able to get our babies justice,” Hackey stated.
Strotman’s continued bond appeal hearing is set for Feb. 11 at 8 a.m. in Henrico Circuit Court.
Prosecutors said Strotman should face additional charges after the Grand Jury meets in March. They mentioned detectives are combing through every minute of surveillance video from when the former nurse was alone with babies.
WATCH: NICU nurse charged with abusing baby to remain in jail pending mental health evaluation
What happens now?
Martin also said she was concerned about Strotman’s potential release because a witness had come forward with evidence that Strotman had applied to care for their child when she was on leave from Henrico Doctors’ Hospital between September 2023 and September 2024.
She said Strotman told the family she was placed on leave due to “tuberculosis exposure.”
“I have concerns about her ability to be truthful,” Martin told the judge.
Everhart said his client had been in isolation at the jail and that is hard to deal with.
He said he does not “get a sense she is contemplating self-harm” and he believed bond is appropriate.
When the judge asked if Strotman still had her nursing license, and if she could voluntarily surrender it, Everhart said she did still have her license, and if the court wanted him to check with the nursing board if she could voluntarily surrender it, he would do that.
Everhart said Strotman would live with her parents where there were no vulnerable adults or children in the home.
Strotman’s continued bond appeal hearing is set for Feb. 11 at 8 a.m. in Henrico Circuit Court.
Prosecutors said Strotman should face additional charges after the grand jury meets in March. They mentioned detectives are combing through every minute of surveillance video from when the former nurse was alone with babies.
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