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Erin Strotman mugshot and social media photo composite
Image via Erin Strotman/Henrico County Sheriff's Office

‘I feel manic’: Text messages reveal the mental state of a former Virginia NICU nurse accused of breaking a premature infant’s bones

Authorities have also responded to rumors the attacks were racially motivated.

Former neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse Erin Strotman is currently in custody, accused of breaking a premature infant’s bones at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Virginia. At a recent court hearing, prosecutors revealed Strotman’s text messages, indicating her mental state when the crime was allegedly committed.

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Strotman’s text messages were shared at the court hearing, where she was denied bond pending the results of a mental health evaluation, according to Richmond news outlet WTVR. At the hearing, the judge ruled Strotman would remain behind bars for her safety. Strotman faces charges from just one case of broken bones at the Henrico NICU, and several other similar incidents starting in 2023 are under investigation.

“I feel manic”

via Richmond Times-Dispatch/X

According to prosecutors, in 2023, Strotman, 26, texted someone she felt “up” like she “did cocaine again.” She also mentioned a borderline personality disorder self-diagnosis. “I feel manic. It takes everything in me not to start sh**,” Strotman wrote. Strotman, who according to prosecutors takes anxiety and depression medication, also wrote in a text, just one day before her arrest, “My therapist’s office is closed, I am five seconds away from checking myself into crisis.”

Racism accusations are unfounded

https://twitter.com/TheAfroElite/status/1876091677276049541
via Afro Elite/X

According to the Daily Mail, Henrico hospital surveillance cameras captured Strotman manipulating the premature infant’s legs as if she was trying to break them. A source told the Mail, this, and the other attacks, for which Strotman has not yet been charged, may have been racially motivated.

“The majority of the babies were black babies,” and all of them were boys, the source whose name was not revealed, said. “When they noticed the pattern, she tried to throw them off by targeting a white baby and a girl baby,” the source added. “People are saying she’s a white supremacist but that’s a bit of a stretch. I definitely felt like she was racist, she was deeply southern rooted,” the source continued.

The source went on to say they were not surprised Strotman was accused of assaulting at least one infant, maybe more. “I was surprised at what she did, but I’m not surprised that it was her. If anyone was to do something crazy, she would have been at the top of the list,” the source said.

A statement from Henrico police, however, said the children were of different races, unlike what the Daily Mail‘s source claimed. “The preliminary investigation indicates this information is not factual,” police explained.

“The children were different races, and there were twins and singletons,” Dominique Hackey, the father of the boy Strotman is accused of assaulting, added. “There was no real methodology there that we can put together. The only thing they have in common is that they are all boys,” Hackey said.

Strotman could spend up to 30 years in prison

https://twitter.com/GeneralMCNews/status/1875729393022337356
via The General/X

According to The New York Times, if convicted, Strotman could spend up to 30 years in prison. She could face additional charges pending the results of the ongoing investigation into the other infants with broken bones at the Henrico NICU. Henrico Doctors’ Hospital closed the NICU amid the investigation, and Strotman was put on administrative leave before she was finally fired. CNN says investigators are evaluating seven cases of broken bones dating to 2023. At least one child was injured many times over several months.


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Author
Image of William Kennedy
William Kennedy
William Kennedy is a full-time freelance content writer and journalist in Eugene, OR. William covered true crime, among other topics for Grunge.com. He also writes about live music for the Eugene Weekly, where his beat also includes arts and culture, food, and current events. He lives with his wife, daughter, and two cats who all politely accommodate his obsession with Doctor Who and The New Yorker.