A Gainesville woman was arrested after deputies said she beat her 2-year-old daughter who later died from her injuries.
Deputies responded to a call Thursday reporting a 2-year-old girl was unconscious and not breathing. Jessica Neathea Wilson, the girl’s 29-year-old mother, told deputies she beat her daughter because she wasn’t listening. Wilson said she stomped on the child’s back and hit her head and body.
According to the arrest report, Wilson said she “went too far” with the beating.
The girl was rushed to the UF Health Pediatric Emergency Room in critical condition. According to the arrest report, the child was placed in a medically induced coma. Medical staff found the child had suffered skull fractures and bruises on her head, chest and back, according to the report. The child died Sunday.
Wilson was initially charged with aggravated child abuse. Following the child’s death, the lead detective added a charge of second-degree murder.
The arrest prompted a Facebook post from the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office.
“I hope that none of us ever have to experience a case like this again,” lead detective Jeremy York said in the post.
Contact Julianna Bendeck at jbendeck@alligator.org.
Julianna Bendeck is a first-year journalism student and the Summer 2026 criminal justice reporter. She previously worked as a contributing writer and race and equity reporter at The Alligator. Outside the newsroom, she enjoys reading, surfing the web and playing video games.
