Mother, Melissa Gutierrez, Chged W/ Negligent Homicide After Son Drowns In Bath Tub/6.17.2013 Gutierrez pleads guilty to negligent homicide in plea deal, gets 5-10 yrs, could be out in 3 years!

September 5, 2011 9:04 PM

MERRIMACK, N.H. (CBS) – Police in New Hampshire have arrested the mother of an eight-month-old boy who drowned in a bath tub.

Melissa Gutierrez surrendered herself to Merrimack Police Monday night.

She was wanted by police on charges of negligent homicide and endangering the welfare of a child.

Police say 25-year-old Gutierrez and the infant’s 2-year-old brother were in the Wilson Hill Road home at the time of the incident Thursday, August 25th. After an investigation, it was determined that the two children were left in the bath tub unattended, for an extended period of time.

The warrant was issued by Merrimack Police at the end of last week. Efforts to locate her on the warrant were unsuccessful, and a press release was generated seeking public assistance in locating her Monday. This developed leads and a new phone number.

Gutierrez was contacted by phone and agreed to surrender herself. She is being held on $100,000 cash bail.

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Sobbing mom in court on infant drowning charges
By KIMBERLY HOUGHTON
Union Leader Correspondent
Published Sep 6, 2011 at 6:00 pm (Updated Sep 6, 2011)

MERRIMACK — An attorney for the woman accused of negligent homicide in the drowning death of her baby boy said his client is still grieving, and called the tragedy a freak accident.

Walking into the courtroom in shackles Tuesday, Melissa M. Gutierrez sobbed uncontrollably, frequently placing her head in her hands and crying out loud.

While her defense attorney read the complaints to Gutierrez, she repeatedly cried “No, no no,” until Judge Clifford Kinghorn temporarily excused them to review the paperwork in private.

Police allege that Gutierrez “negligently caused the death of (Christian Ntapalis), an 8-month-old male infant, by leaving him unattended in a bathtub for an unreasonable extended period of time, exposing him to unnecessary risk,” court documents say.

The incident occurred around 10 a.m. Aug. 25 at her 46 Wilson Hill Road home. The mother, according to police, attempted to resuscitate the child but was unsuccessful. The baby and his 2-year-old brother were unsupervised in the bathtub with running water at the time of the drowning, according to court records.

In addition to the negligent homicide charge, Gutierrez has also been charged with child endangering for allegedly leaving the 2-year-old boy in the bathtub without supervision, court documents say. He is now in state custody, according to family members.

Gutierrez has a lengthy criminal history. Police say she was convicted of driving after revocation in 2009, driving while intoxicated in 2008, possession of cocaine in 2008 and simple assault in 2005. Most of her jail time has been suspended, although she did serve a month in jail in 2009 after the drunk driving conviction, and previously had her license revoked for 90 days.

The baby's father, Peter Ntapalis, was in the courtroom on Tuesday and sat quietly while Gutierrez wept and had periodic outbursts. After the court proceeding, Ntapalis walked to his car while refusing to comment or answer questions.

“She is not a stranger to the court system,” Capt. Mike Dudash said of Gutierrez, highlighting a series of recent felony theft charges alleging Gutierrez stole personal checks from a Merrimack woman and attempted to cash them at Manchester banks earlier this year. She is also accused of stealing a GPS from the same woman.

For those incidents, she was charged on March 14 with five counts of theft by unauthorized taking, two counts of operating after suspension and two counts of operating without financial responsibility. That case is still pending at Hillsborough County Superior Court.

Because of the serious nature of the most recent charges involving two young children, Dudash recommended that bail remain at $100,000 cash only.

Gutierrez's defense attorney, Anthony Sculimbrene, said police delayed bringing charges immediately after the child's drowning so that the boy's mother could attend the funeral service. Sculimbrene argued that Gutierrez turned herself in to police, and that if she was a flight risk, she would have already fled. If anyone else was truly in danger, authorities would have arrested her sooner, he said.

“This was a complete and total freak accident,” said Sculimbrene, stressing that there were no bruises or trauma to the baby, or any evidence of shaken-baby syndrome.

When authorities attempted to arrest Gutierrez on Monday, she was not at her home on Wilson Hill Road or her family's campsite in Tyngsborough, Mass., prompting local police to issue a news release asking for the public's help in locating her.

According to Sculimbrene, his client was unable to continue living in the home where her baby had drowned, and was instead staying at a motel in Manchester while making funeral arrangements for her son.

“She did exactly what she was supposed to do,” he said. “She was grieving for her child.”

Kinghorn reduced bail from $100,000 cash only to $50,000 cash or surety.

Gutierrez will be back in court on Sept. 15 for a probable cause hearing. She has been ordered to have no unsupervised contact with any children.

According to court documents, Gutierrez has been unemployed for about three years, having previously worked at Sea World Pet Center in Salem.

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Nancy Grace is saying this "mother" has bonded out of jail but cannot find anything online.

Ha! NG is widely known to spread false "information" so I'd only believe it if I saw it online as well.

The bond was $100,000 CASH bond. Bet she didn't bond out, but JMO.

The judge reduced the bail to $50K cash, originally it was $100K.
Her attorney is full of ****, no way was this a freak 'accident'! One does not leave a eight month old alone in the bathtub under ANY circumstances, what did she expect? She needs to go down for negligent homicide and thank her lucky stars it wasn't first degree murder!

Her boy friend Peter Ntapalis lost custody of his 2 children over a year ago. Melissa had also lost custody of her oldest child a few weeks prior to this latest incident. See the pattern here?

As far as being bonded out, her boyfriend, the father of the baby, bailed her out. She plead not guilty at a probable cause hearing yesterday morning, and a hearing is being scheduled.

Christian Maddox Ntapalis, 8 months, died Aug. 25, 2011, at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, after an accident at home.

He was born on Dec. 13, 2010, in Manchester, the son of Peter Ntapalis and Melissa Gutierrez. He was a happy, healthy, intelligent young boy who was full of life.

In addition to his loving parents, he is survived by his brothers, James Blackington III of Merrimack, and Zachary Ntapalis of Manchester; his sisters, Nevaeh Tessier and Alana Ntapalis, both of Manchester; his maternal grandmother, Patience Hibbard of Pelham; his paternal grandmother, Beverly Ntapalis of Dracut, Mass.; many aunts, uncles and cousins.

He was predeceased by his uncle and aunt, Gregory and Christina Ntapalis; his paternal grandfather, John Ntapalis; and his maternal grandfather, Louis Gutierrez.

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to VH dhebert111111! Too bad it's such a sad situation, I do hope you'll like it here.
That mother, egg donor is a real piece of work, dad too.
The egg donor lost custody of her two oldest children recently, why was the eight year old there, do you know? She didn't lose custody of the baby????? DCF is a piece of work too.
Those poor children. And the egg donor is out on bail, omg! I hope she is not with any children!

Welcome to VH, "dhebert111111"!!

Raine voiced it ALL!! What a sad mess and what two pieces of crap raising these children!!!!

Please keep us apprised of the latest and for your membership!

And the egg donor is out on bail, omg! I hope she is not with any children!

She has been ordered to have no unsupervised contact with any children.

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Check out the comments on the thread above. WOW!

Melissa has been in a coustody battle for her daughter "Nevaeh" ever since the childs aunt was called to a local emergency room to take custody. Melissa was there for an alleged drug overdose. This happened several years ago when Nevaeh was around 3 years old. Finally after all her criminal activity over the last few years. The state stepped up to the plate and the court orered Melissa into a supervised visitation center

It's So great to have you here to give us the Real story..things the media doesn't say.

Wrap, those comments at the above link WERE something else!! But, I agree wholeheartedly with most of them. Off the topic, but not really, the government is going to have to revamp the system as it now stands. There ARE people laying back on welfare, and some even on disability, having babies one after another, getting free medical, dental, and eye. I am on Medicare and I don't get dental and eye, FGS. And at my age I need dental. God forbid I should ever lose my teeth and need dentures, how will I pay for that???? They get subsidized housing, so their rent is like $51 a month (as an example, I know someone whose rent is $900 but with section 8 they only have to pay $51 a month. Unfreakingreal. Then they get their monthly check. And we know how long those relationships last, the man leaves the woman, she is pregnant with his kid, and on and on and on. All their kids have different last names. None of the dads pay support.
NOT EVERYONE on welfare, I understand. But it's amazing how many people I know or meet that could work if they wanted to but prefer to lay around, sleep till 11am, and live pretty decently. No wonder they drink and get high- they have nothing else to do. Then you have the women who get all of the above but have a boyfriend living with them that's working (or selling drugs) and could actually live comfortably on what the man brings in...but they don't want to better themselves and drop the freebies and get a job themselves.
Also available to them are other things that as a taxpayer and a person on disability therefore a limited income I am unable to afford...psychiatric care or therapy, free daycare so they can work, free clothes (sometimes brand new clothes) and the list goes on and on. If I utilized things like mental therapy, physical therapy etc I would have to pay a copay every visit. Medical Assistance beneficeries (sp) have no copay. Dental is free. Teeth cleaning- free!! I can't even remember the last time I went to the dentist for anything other than a dental emergency. I've had 2 molars pulled because I couldn't afford the root canal the dentist was recommending.
I remember a woman w/ 3 kids who had to take her kids to Johns Hopkins for treatments to their teeth and mouth because they had raised them with a baby bottle filled with soda, koolade, etc hanging out of their mouths all the time and their teeth had not only rotted out (baby teeth!!!) but their jaw bones holding the teeth in were damaged from the tooth decay. How lazy can a mother get?

In the case of this mom, sounds to me like she was 'impaired' if she actually left the kids in the tub w/ water running while she ate a bowl of cereal downstairs? Nobody does that, if she wasn't drunk or high she really should have the book thrown at her PLUS her tubes tied.

JMO.

Sounds like our girl. 3 children, 3 different fathers. The 2yr olds name is J.J.. His father, was 55 Milessa was 23. She went to work at his pet store. Thats how they met. It was the only job she had ever had, and it was part time. It should also be noted that his family has blamed Melissa for his death at the age of 55. Due to an overdose of Viagra.Because J.J. was his only hier, he ended up with the buisness, the house, etc... Melissa as J.J.'S mother and gaurdian, was in charge of all this and lost the house to forclosure, and the buisness to bankruptcy J.J's father died of a heart attack while on a buisness trip to Florida with Melissa in the car. They had his cell phone, her cell phone, on star, and a gps system, and she could not get him to a hospital in time, or call for help. Believe me this story goes from bad to worse and beyond. This is an evil person who is linked up to someone just as evil,and yet I can't help feel that she might actually walk again with out jail time!

dhebert

Drowned baby's mom moving toward trial
By KIMBERLY HOUGHTON
Union Leader Correspondent
Published Nov 19, 2011 at 3:00 am

MERRIMACK — The mother accused of negligent homicide in the drowning death of her baby boy was scheduled to appear in court on Friday but opted to waive the proceeding.

Melissa M. Gutierrez, 25, remains free on bail after being indicted last month on charges of negligent homicide, manslaughter, two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

Police allege that she left her two children, an 8-month-old baby and a 2-year-old boy, unattended in the bathtub for an extended period of time. The baby, Christian Ntapalis, drowned as a result of her negligence on Aug. 25 at their home at 46 Wilson Hill Road, police allege.

She was arrested two weeks later. On Friday, she was scheduled to be arraigned in Hillsborough County Superior Court in Nashua, but the proceeding never took place.

According to Attorney Kent Smith of the Hillsborough County Attorney's Office, there was no formal hearing because paperwork was filed by Gutierrez's legal counsel to waive arraignment.

Smith anticipates a structuring conference on the case will likely be held within the next month to determine tentative dates for jury selection and the trial.

Gutierrez previously posted a $50,000 surety bond and was released from jail Sept. 7.

Police have released few details about the case and have refused to say what the mother was doing or where she was when the two children were left alone in the bathtub with the water running. Police will not elaborate on how long the children were unsupervised in the tub.

Gutierrez, along with emergency personnel, attempted to resuscitate Christian but were unsuccessful, police said previously.

The Union Leader has learned that Gutierrez had been arrested in Manchester in 2009 for allegedly leaving the older boy, James Blackington, who was 3-months-old at the time, alone in a car for about 15 minutes while she went into the city's welfare office to conduct business.

According to Manchester District Court records, Gutierrez was charged with endangering the welfare of a child for the Aug. 6, 2009, incident, but the charge was dropped.

James, now 2 years old, was with Christian in the bathtub when the baby drowned this past September. James was placed in state custody following the incident, according to police; his father is deceased.

While out on bail, Gutierrez is prohibited from unsupervised contact with anyone under age 18. Court documents indicate that she has a third child, Nevaeh Tessier, 7, who is being raised by the girl's aunt.

Gutierrez's defense attorney, Anthony Sculimbrene, previously described Christian's drowning as a “complete and total freak accident,” saying his client was grieving for her child.

Christian's father, Peter Ntapalis, has declined to comment.

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This lovely couple have moved back into the home were the baby died. The mortgage was in collections, and he some how managed to come up with over $7,000 to not only bring it up to date but pay it till Feb. Yet neither one of them is working and he is over $9,000 behind in child support. We have not been able to confiirm it, but a very reliable source has told us that both children had traces of crack cocain in their systems

11/13/2010
HOME: 46 WILSON HILL RD MERRIMACK, NH
NTAPALIS, PETER J 46 MALE
A&B WITH DANGEROUS WEAPON c265 §15A(b)
A&B, AGGRAVATED c265 §13A(b)
Arrest Date and Charges:

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I will always love and miss
Nevaeh - Tue, 08/30/2011 - 14:59.
I will always love and miss you! I know you're in God's house now safe & sound forever living with the angels. I will miss you forever and ever. I will always pray to you. I know you will always watch over me! Keep smiling, you happy stinky little brother of mine! I love you so much... Your Big sister, Nevaeh

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Mom Charged in Baby's Death Can Visit Older Son
Melissa M. Gutierrez, 25, remains free on bail.

By Marc Fortier Email the author 9:15 am

A mother charged with negligent homicide in the death of her 8-month-old son has been given permission to visit with her older, 2-year-old son, according to the Union Leader.

Melissa M. Gutierrez, 25, is free on bail after she was indicted last fall of negligent homicide, manslaughter, two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. She allegedly left her two sons in the bathtub without supervision for what police said was "an extended period of time" last Aug. 25. The youngest, Christian Ntapalis, drowned.

Since her arrest in early September, the Union Leader says Gutierrez had not been allowed to see her older son, who was placed in state custody. But on Jan. 23, the newspaper reports, a judge granted a motion filed by Gutierrez's lawyer asking that she be allowed to have contact with her son as well as a 7-year-old child being raised by Gutierrez's aunt.

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The following appeared in the Feb, 14th edition of the Manchester Union Leader.
It is disturbing to say the least that this has happened more then once right here in New Hampshire. The similarities between the two tragedies are eerie. We can only hope that justice will catch up with Miss Gutierrez as it did with Jessica Botelho. Unfourtanatly it takes time.

• JESSICA BOTELHO

MANCHESTER — A woman who left her 1-year-old and 2 1/2-year-old sons in the bathtub and spent 40 minutes online while the youngest drowned was convicted of manslaughter, negligent homicide and reckless conduct by a Hillsborough County Superior Court jury Friday.

Hillsborough County Attorney Dennis Hogan said Jessica Botelho, 24, faces sentences of 15 to 30 years at the New Hampshire State Prison on the manslaughter conviction and an additional two to five years for reckless conduct.

Police said she left the children unsupervised in the tub the afternoon of July 13, 2010, while she used her computer on the porch of her Hayward Street apartment. When the older boy got out of the tub and told his mother the baby was “sleeping,” Botelho returned to the bathroom and found the 1-year-old not breathing.

She took the baby to a neighbor, who told her to start CPR, and a friend took her to Elliot Hospital.

The infant was not breathing and had no pulse, but after 15 minutes, medical personnel were able to get his heart beating. But he suffered from “minimal brain function and severe neurological devastation” and was removed from life support. He died July 20, 2010.

Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jennie Duval listed his cause of death as “complications of near-drowning.”

Botelho initially said she left the children alone only for a few minutes, but a computer analysis showed she was actively online for 40 minutes while the children were alone in the tub.

Relatives said at the time of the drowning that she put the boys into the tub several times a day “as a way to pacify them.”


Assistant Hillsborough County Attorney Jennifer Sandoval prosecuted the case against Botelho.

dhebert111111, another one!! Makes me sick! Do you have a link, please??

Sorry I don't have the link, but if you visit the Unkon Leaders web site you can find all the above info

Sorry, That should read "Union Leader"

In the February 17th edition of the Nasua NH Telegraph, Joseph Cote a staff writer, reported that the state has offered Gutierrez a 10 to 20 year sentence. She has not responded as of today. The judge in this case has set September as the trial date. The Judge Has also granted Gutierrez permission to see her other son,(the 2 yr old that was also left alone in the tub) under conditions set by the states division of Children Youth and Families. Doesn't seem like much justice for Christian

It sure doesn't!! Do you by chance have a link?? Great to see you here!!

Here is a link to THE MERRIMACK PATCH. This is a web site that deals with local news in Merrimack NH where this tragidy happened. This is also where I first found the info. I have confirmed this with Kimberly Houghton, a staff writer for the Manchester Union Leader who has been reporting on this since the begining. Unfourtanatly Kim has told me that these type of trials are usually delayed.

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Here it is and another article I found, thanks dhebert111111!

Mother Offered 10-20 Years in Baby's Drowning

A mother charged with negligent homicide in the death of her 8-month-old son has been offered a 10 to 20 year sentence, according to the Nashua Telegraph.

Melissa M. Gutierrez, 25, is free on bail after she was indicted last fall of negligent homicide, manslaughter, two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. She allegedly left her two sons in the bathtub without supervision for "an extended period of time" last Aug. 25. The youngest, Christian Ntapalis, drowned.

According to the Telegraph, documents filed in Hillsborough County Superior Court show that county prosecutors offered the sentence to Gutierrez last month, presumably in exchange for a guilty plea.

Since her arrest in early September, Gutierrez had not been allowed to see her 2-year-old son, who was placed in state custody. But that changed recently when a judge granted a motion filed by Gutierrez's lawyer asking that she be allowed to have contact with her son as well as a 7-year-old child being raised by Gutierrez's aunt.
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Mom Charged in Baby's Death Can Visit Older Son

A mother charged with negligent homicide in the death of her 8-month-old son has been given permission to visit with her older, 2-year-old son, according to the Union Leader.

Melissa M. Gutierrez, 25, is free on bail after she was indicted last fall of negligent homicide, manslaughter, two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. She allegedly left her two sons in the bathtub without supervision for what police said was "an extended period of time" last Aug. 25. The youngest, Christian Ntapalis, drowned.

Since her arrest in early September, the Union Leader says Gutierrez had not been allowed to see her older son, who was placed in state custody. But on Jan. 23, the newspaper reports, a judge granted a motion filed by Gutierrez's lawyer asking that she be allowed to have contact with her son as well as a 7-year-old child being raised by Gutierrez's aunt.
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The following was taken from yesterdays E-edition of The New Hampshire Union Leader. Those of us who are close to this tragedy, knew it was just a matter of time befor she was arrested again.

Merrimack mom awaiting trial arrested for drugs, shoplifting

By JAMES A. KIMBLE
Union Leader Correspondent

Published Apr 11, 2012 at 2:43 pm (Updated Apr 11, 2012)

SALEM – A Merrimack mother awaiting trial for allegedly letting her 8-month-old baby drown in a bathtub is back in jail after being arrested Tuesday for drug possession and shoplifting at the Mall at Rockingham Park, according to a police affidavit.

Melissa Maria Gutierrez, 26, was charged with theft and two counts of possession of a controlled drug by Salem police.

Gutierrez was free on bail awaiting trial on a negligent homicide charge in Hillsborough County Superior Court for the death of her baby son, Christian Ntapalis, on Aug. 25, 2011.

Salem police were called to the Lord & Taylor store Tuesday night by loss-prevention workers. They already had Gutierrez in custody when police arrived.

“Gutierrez was seen selecting numerous pairs of jeans throughout the store and taking them into the fitting room,” Salem police officer Robert Holland wrote in a sworn affidavit.

She broke the security sensor off four pairs of jeans in a fitting room before stuffing them in a garbage bag and leaving the store, the police affidavit said.

A loss-prevention worker checked the changing room that Gutierrez was in and “saw jeans with damaged sensors on the floor,” Holland wrote.

Gutierrez exited the store without paying for the jeans, but was apprehended by loss-prevention workers, Holland wrote. The stolen clothes were valued at $302, police said.

An officer searched Gutierrez' purse and found two pill bottles that were not prescribed to her, one containing Alzprazolam, the other Clonazapam, police said.

At her arraignment, Judge Paul Moore ordered Gutierrez held on $25,000 cash-only bail in 10th Circuit Court, Salem District Division.

Gutierrez faces more charges in Nashua and Manchester, too. Listing her address as 46 Wilson Hill Road, Merrimack, at her arraignment March 26 in 9th Circuit Court, Manchester District Division, she was charged with resisting arrest for allegedly fighting with officers while she was being booked at the Manchester Police Department after her arrest on a warrant for a 2011 Nashua theft by unauthorized taking charge.

Gutierrez told Judge Gregory Michael she resisted when officers tried to take something belonging to her dead son away from her during the booking process.

Michael set bail at $1,000 cash/surety on the resisting arrest charge, which is scheduled for trial June 7, and $1,000 cash/surety on the Nashua charge, with an April 9 arraignment date.

She has been free on $50,000 bail while awaiting trial in connection with the drowning of her son.

Jury selection in that case is scheduled to begin Sept. 24. She also faces charges of manslaughter, reckless conduct and endangering the welfare of a child.

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Thanks dhebert. I hope no one helps her bail out of jail.

Thanks so much for the heads up, dhebert. I went ahead and found the link for your post. If you can please add a link when you post, I would sure appreciate it!!

A

Are you kidding me? Once again she is let out of jail. I am so disgusted with our judicial system here in New Hampshire. I am really starting to doubt if there will be any justice served for the death of baby Christian.

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Woman charged in baby’s death on house arrest after theft, drug charges

By JOSEPH G. COTE
Staff photo by BOB HAMMERSTROM
Melissa Gutierrez listens to her bail hearing Monday, April 30, 2012, in Hillsborough Country Superior Court.

EnlargePurchase PhotoNASHUA – A judge put Melissa Gutierrez under house arrest, instead of jail, after finding probable cause that she stole jeans from a store in Salem.

Gutierrez, 26, of Merrimack, is awaiting a September trial on negligent homicide and child endangerment in the drowning death of her 8-month-old son Christian Ntapalis on Aug. 25.

On April 10, she was charged with theft and drug possession counts after four pairs of jeans were shoplifted from the Lord & Taylor store at the Mall at Rockingham Park.

Officers also found Gutierrez in possession of prescription drugs she did not have a prescription for, according to police.

Hillsborough County attorney’s office prosecutor Kent Smith asked Judge Diane Nicolosi to revoke Gutierrez’s bail on the negligent homicide charges because of the new charges.

But Nicolosi granted Gutierrez another chance by putting her under house arrest. She’s allowed to leave her Wilson Hill Road home only to meet with her attorneys, for mental health counseling appointments and to visit her 3-year-old son under the supervision of the Division for Children, Youth & Families, Nicolosi said.

“I’m going to give you a chance,” Nicolosi said. “You’ve got to stay in treatment. You’ve got to maintain yourself in a way to help your lawyers in your defense.”

Gutierrez, who cried through much of the hearing, which lasted more than an hour, thanked Nicolosi, sobbing and leaning over.

“Yes, ma’am. Thank you so much,” she said.

Gutierrez appeared at the hearing wearing an orange jail jumpsuit with her dark hair pulled back in a small bun. Her ankles were shackled.

Smith said Gutierrez’s most recent arrest showed a “callous disregard” for the court’s orders for charges that are the most serious the county attorney’s office prosecutes.

After a failed attempt to have the motion to revoke bail dismissed, defense attorney Anthony Sculimbrene asked to have Gutierrez freed on bail but with additional conditions, including GPS monitoring, house arrest and intensive pretrial supervision.

Sculimbrene asked the judge to recognize that Gutierrez has been working hard to help her lawyers and to reunite with her older son.

“She’s done a lot of work trying to reunify with her son,” he said. “She takes these charges incredibly serious. She’s doing a lot of work that quite frankly a lot of people don’t do in their criminal cases.”

Gutierrez also would be far better off and able to participate in her own defense if she were living at home and seeing her own doctor, Sculimbrene said.

He said he realizes it’s unusual to argue for bail given the misdemeanor charges following negligent homicide charges, but said, “This is an unusual case. The stakes in this case are pretty substantial.”

The hearing included testimony from Erin Arsenault, a loss prevention officer at Lord & Taylor.

Asenault said she watched Gutierrez take several pairs of jeans into a dressing room and then walk out of the store. Another employee stopped her in the mall, and Arsenault said she found security tags in the dressing room and the jeans in a shopping bag carried by Gutierrez, along with wire cutters, a purse and a wallet.

The jeans were worth a little more than $300, Arsenault said.

In early September, Gutierrez was arraigned for negligent homicide roughly two weeks after her son was found dead in the bathtub where he was allegedly left unattended. She also pleaded innocent to a misdemeanor charge of failing to appear in court in connection with an unrelated matter, while a judge dismissed theft charges Gutierrez faced for allegedly forging and cashing more than $3,700 in stolen checks.

Merrimack Police Capt. Mike Dudash called the baby’s death a serious criminal offense, but public defender Sculimbrene characterized it as a tragic accident.

Joseph G. Cote can be reached at 594-6415 or [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]. Also, follow Cote on Twitter (@Telegraph_JoeC).

September 28. 2012 10:17PM

By DOUG ALDEN
New Hampshire Union Leader

MANCHESTER — A woman who is facing negligent homicide and manslaughter charges in the drowning of her baby boy was arrested Friday for driving with a suspended license, her second arrest in the last two weeks.

Melissa Gutierrez, 26, was pulled over up around 3 a.m. Friday after officers noticed she had failed to signal a turn, then remained parked at a stop sign for about five minutes at the intersection of Cedar and Pine streets. According to court documents, officers ran her name and found she was convicted of driving on a suspended license in February 2009. She was taken into custody and jailed on a charge of driving with a suspended license, second violation.

Court documents showed she was released later Friday. She did not return a request for comment left Friday.

Gutierrez also faces a charge of theft by unauthorized taking from an incident Sept. 14 at a Rite Aid on Elm St. and is scheduled for a court date Oct. 5.

Matthew Pennington, a public defender who represented Gutierrez in the shoplifting case, declined to comment when asked about Gutierrez's latest arrest or any of her pending cases.

Assistant Hillsborough County Attorney David Tencza said his office filed a motion to have her bail revoked after learning of the shoplifting arrest. The motion was still pending as of Friday and it was not immediately clear if or how her traffic stop could affect the motion.

Tencza said he was limited by a court gag order on what he could say about the negligent homicide and manslaughter charges Gutierrez still faces in the death of her 8-month-old son Christian Ntapalis, who drowned Aug. 25, 2011 in a bathtub.

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Yet another drugged up parent. Makes me absolutely livid!!

Bail revoked for Merrimack mother charged with negligent homicide in drowning death of baby

By PATRICK MEIGHAN
Staff Writer

NASHUA – A judge revoked bail for a Merrimack mother whose baby drowned in a bathtub after finding probable cause that the woman had violated conditions of house arrest twice, once for shoplifting in a pharmacy.

Melissa Gutierrez was led away to Valley Street jail in Manchester after Judge Diane Nicolosi revoked her bail following an 80-minute hearing in Hillsborough County Superior Court on Friday. Whether Gutierrez can have supervised visits at the jail with another young son will be up to the state Division for Children, Youth & Families, Nicolosi said.

Gutierrez was placed on house arrest on April 30 as she awaited trial on negligent homicide and other charges related to the August 2011 drowning death of her infant son.

Gutierrez wept when Nicolosi immediately revoked bail following the conclusion of evidence, which included testimony from two Manchester police officers and a Manchester Rite Aid pharmacy security officer, plus the playing of the pharmacy’s security tape.

“I have concerns for the public’s safety given that even with the charges she’s facing, she can’t control her behavior,” Nicolosi said.

Gutierrez, who also sobbed as she was led into the courtroom, was consoled by her public defender attorneys, Anthony Sculimbrene and Kristin Weberg. For the hearing, she wore a long-sleeve white sweatshirt and sweatpants with “D.I.V.A.” in large letters across the seat of the pants.

Manchester Police Officer Morgan Lovejoy testified he stopped Gutierrez at 3 a.m. Sept. 28 for failing to signal while making a left turn. Gutierrez was arrested when police discovered her license had been suspended, Lovejoy testified.

Nicolosi didn’t consider the suspended license when revoking bail. Instead, the judge found there was probable cause Gutierrez was driving in Manchester at 3 a.m., in itself a violation of the conditions of the house arrest.

In the other incident, Manchester Police Officer Matthew Barter and Rite Aid loss prevention agent Michael Dove testified that on Sept. 15, Gutierrez had left the pharmacy with a hairbrush, shampoo and a beverage without paying for them.

The contents of Gutierrez’s purse contained what Barter testified he recognized as a crack cocaine pipe, and also a cigarette packet box with five small bags of white powder.

Assistant Hillsborough County Attorney David Tencza said a state lab found traces of cocaine in one of the five bags.

Nicolosi didn’t consider the drug evidence police say was found in Gutierrez’s purse. However, the testimony and store security video established probable cause that Gutierrez had committed the crime of shoplifting, thus another violation of the house arrest conditions, Nicolosi ruled.

Dove testified that when he told Gutierrez police were on their way to the pharmacy, she cursed twice. When Dove asked why she had, Gutierrez replied, “Because I’m out on bail for negligent homicide and manslaughter,” Dove testified.

Gutierrez is facing one charge of negligent homicide and two counts each of reckless conduct and endangering the welfare of a child, according to court documents.

Gutierrez was arraigned last September after her 8-month-old son, Christian Ntapalis, was found dead in a bathtub at Gutierrez’s Wilson Hill Road home in Merrimack.

Earlier this year, a document that seemed to be an offer from prosecutors to recommend a sentence of 10-20 years as part of a plea deal appeared in the court record.

Patrick Meighan can be reached at 594-6518 or pmeighan@nashua telegraph.com. Also, follow Meighan on Twitter (@Telegraph_PatM).

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Thanks for posting thisdhebert111111, I'm so glad to hear the judge revoked her bail. IMOO the tears she shed was for herself.
Could you please provide a link for the above?

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Video of the egg donor at the above.

Above video states she had a crack pipe in her purse. Must-see vide that Raine posted!

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I am very close to this situation and the articles above do not even come close to describing the type of people that this individual and her "boy-friend" Mr NTapalis are. A total of 5 children between them and they not only lost custody of all of 5, (Of course this includes the baby that died) but he can not have any contact what so ever with his 2 biological children, that turn 12 and 13 today and tomorrow.

Thanks, dhebert111111

A Merrimack mother accused of negligent homicide in the death of her 8-month-old son will not have her day in court for another three to six months after her trial was pushed back again, according to a story Tuesday's Nashua Telegraph.

Melissa Gutierrez of Merrimack, was due to stand trial in the drowning death of her son Christian Ntapalis in early February, but a suppression hearing that has been delayed since last year was pushed back once again awaiting a doctor's report regarding the young mother's mental state when she made statements to police at the hospital in Aug. 2011.

Gutierrez's case has been pushed to April, according to the Telegraph, but could be pushed off even longer due to judges scheduling conflicts.

Gutierrez is awaiting trial at the Hillsborough County House of Corrections after being arrested multiple times while out on bail for this case. She was arrested last April for allegedly shoplifting at Lord and Taylor in the Rockingham Park Mall in Salem. Judge Diane Nicolosi said during a bail hearing following that incident that she was giving Gutierrez one last chance, putting her on house arrest, allowing her to leave home for therapy and supervised visits with another of her children.

Gutierrez, however, was arrested again, twice in a week in Manchester for driving without a license and shoplifting from a Manchester pharmacy. She was sent back to jail to await trial following those September arrests.

Gutierrez was indicted in October 2011 on charges of negligent homicide, manslaughter and two counts of reckless conduct for allegedly leaving Christian and a 1-year-old sibling unattended in a bathtub for an extended period of time on Aug. 25. She found her son unresponsive in the tub and called 911. Paramedics attempted to revive the unresponsive baby but he was pronounced dead at the hospital a short time later.
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March 11. 2013 3:00PM
By KIMBERLY HOUGHTON
Union Leader Correspondent

MERRIMACK - A medical expert testified Monday that Melissa Gutierrez, the local mother accused of negligent homicide in the drowning death of her baby, has led a life surrounded with death and drug addiction.

During a hearing Monday in Hillsborough County Superior Court on Gutierrez's motion to suppress illegally obtained statements, Dr. Albert Drukteinis maintained that Melissa Gutierrez was already suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder before her 8-month-old baby was found lying face first in a bathtub filled with water on Aug. 25, 2011.

Gutierrez previously lost her father to a fatal car accident and also grieved her former partner who died in her arms during a heart attack, according to Drukteinis, who testified that the young mother had an addiction to crack cocaine, prostituted herself and was the victim of a gang rape.

Drukteinis said she has attempted suicide in the past, including one attempted suicide incident after the drowning of her baby, Christian Ntapalis. Gutierrez, 27, is facing charges of negligent homicide, manslaughter, two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child for the drowning incident at her home at 46 Wilson Hill Road. Her trial is expected to begin later this year.

Police allege that she left her two children, Christian, then 8 months, and James Blackington III, then 2 years old, unattended in the bathtub for an extended period of time with the water running. The youngest drowned as a result of her negligence, police said.

Court records indicate that the mother may have fallen asleep on the couch while water overflowed the bathtub where her two children played, eventually flooding the bathroom and causing water to leak through to the basement ceiling.

Monday's hearing addressed a motion to suppress statements that Gutierrez made to police after her son's death. An attorney for Gutierrez, Anthony Sculimbrene, alleged the statements were obtained while Gutierrez was hysterical over the baby's death.

Drukteinis claimed that Gutierrez was suffering from acute stress disorder from the moment she found her baby unconscious, contending the mental illness impacted her ability to make rational decisions when speaking with authorities on three different occasions on the day of the boy's death and the day after. The acute stress disorder causes individuals to become confused, results in memory impairments, presents a disconnect with reality and causes them to feel removed from their environment, the psychiatrist explained.

Gutierrez sobbed during Monday's court hearing, crying aloud during testimony about when she found her son unconscious in the bathtub, and later had the opportunity to say her final goodbye to him at the hospital.

"The level of trauma is very, very severe," said Drukteinis, who added that Gutierrez is still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder today. Sculimbrene added that Gutierrez was hearing voices after the death of her son, and that she once had a vision of Christian bouncing in his exersaucer even though he was already deceased.

Several police officers were called to testify Monday, including Sgt. Kenneth MacLeod. Although Gutierrez was obviously upset, MacLeod said he gave her time to collect herself during questioning at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center the day of Christian's drowning. She was able to answer questions clearly and in a straightforward manner, according to MacLeod, who said he did not use any interview techniques or tactics when questioning Gutierrez.

The following day at the police station, Gutierrez told authorities, "I'm not the reason my baby died . I would never hurt my baby."

Although police offered her the chance to have a blood test taken the day after the drowning, MacLeod said it was her decision, and the procedure was never performed that day. "She was honest with us about drug abuse the day before," MacLeod said, not elaborating on the statement.

David Tencza, assistant Hillsborough County attorney, has filed an objection to the defendant's motion to suppress illegally obtained statements, arguing Gutierrez was not subjected to a custodial interrogation at the time she made incriminating statements to police.

While Gutierrez could not tell authorities how long her sons were unattended in the tub during initial interviews, she eventually told police they were left alone for about 7 to 15 minutes, and an additional 3 to 5 minutes while she searched for a towel in the basement, according to court documents. Court records indicate that the mother may have fallen asleep on the couch while water overflowed the bathtub where her two children played; however, she later changed her story and insisted that she had not fallen asleep, but was instead cleaning the living room.

Her oldest son, James, now 3, was placed in state custody after the incident, as his father is deceased.

Since her son's death, Gutierrez has been arrested three times - once for allegedly stealing jeans from a store in Salem, again for allegedly taking unpaid merchandise from a Rite-Aid in Manchester, and once more for allegedly operating a vehicle after suspension.

Judge Diane Nicolosi will make a decision on whether to suppress the statements in the coming weeks, as the trial will be held later this year.

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By Carolyn Dube Email the author 5:46 am

Attorneys seeking to suppress statements made to police by Melissa Gutierrez the day her son died told the court on Monday that their client suffers from a medical condition, which they say affected her thinking when she made the decision to speak to police that day in August 2011, according to an article on NashuaTelegraph.com.

Gutierrez, 27, is facing a trial for negligent homicide in in the death of her 8-month-old son, Christian Ntapalis, who drowned in the bathtub at Gutierrez's 46 Wilson Hill Road home about a year and a half ago. The baby was found unresponsive in the tub by Gutierrez, who police say left him up there unsupervised for an extended period of time with his 2-year-old brother who was bathing with him.

On Monday, attorneys for Gutierrez painted a picture of a life fraught with pain and emotional distress caused in part by the death of her father following a fight she had with him and the death of a partner who suffered a heart attack died in her arms. She also struggled at one point in her life with a crack cocaine addiction, was gang raped and at one point turned to prostitution, Dr. Albert Drukteinis, a forensics psychiatrist, told the court.

Druktenis described Gutierrez as suffering from acute stress disorder and said a confused memory brought on by this disorder muddled her understanding of the consequences of what could happen if she spoke with police about the events of the morning her son died. Her attorneys say this is reason to toss the statements from evidence in a trial expected to be held this summer.

Judge Diane Nicolosi took the case under advisement and will later issue a written decision on the matter.

Gutierrez, who was originally out on bail following Ntapalis' death, has been living in jail since October when Nicolosi remanded her into custody following series of unrelated arrests in 2012.

Gutierrez was arrested twice in Manchester in September, the first time on Sept. 14 on a charge of theft by unauthorized taking and the second on Sept. 28 for driving after suspension, a second offense.

Gutierrez was placed on house arrest by Nicolosi after she was arrested in April for theft and possession of a controlled drug. She was arrested in Salem for shoplifting from Lord & Taylor at the Mall at Rockingham Park.

“Let me not have you leave this court without understanding that you cannot do this again,” Nicolosi told Gutierrez during the April 30 hearing.

On Oct. 5, Nicolosi said Gutierrez is a danger to the community and ordered her to return to jail.

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