Police: Belleville mother tried to drown infant in toilet

By Ann Rubin

KSDK -- Authorities believe a Metro East mother gave birth in a bathroom and then tried to drown her baby. 23-year-old Elyse Mamino has been charged with attempted first-degree murder, but more charges are possible.

That's because when authorities began investigating the attempted murder of one infant, they discovered the remains of another inside her home. The remains were badly decomposed and at least a year old. Authorities expect forensic tests will tell them more.

"If it was a live birth, a still birth, we don't know," says Captain Don Sax with Belleville Police.

Authorities have just begun to investigate this case. However, police in Columbia are trying to wrap up their investigation into the attempted murder of the newborn.

They say it happened in the 700 block of Briar Lake Place in mid-November. Police believe Mamino gave birth in a bathroom while attending a party. They say she then held the infant face down in a toilet while it gasped for air. A 911 call reported the birth as a miscarriage. But when an officer arrived he found something different.

"He saw what he believed to be the baby to be moving, says Col. Joseph Edwards, Chief of Columbia Police. "So that officer along with another individual at the residence removed the infant from the toilet and began resuscitation attempts."

The baby lived. The investigation into the attempted murder took several months. During that time, the Department of Children and Family Services actually returned the newborn to Mamino. Columbia Police say this was against their recommendation. DCFS did not return our calls.

Elyse Mamino worked with autistic children as a teacher's aid at Franklin Elementary in Belleville.