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Jacksonville woman arrested after 3-year-old suffered second-degree burns in her care, police say

A Jacksonville woman was arrested after police said a 3-year-old suffered second-degree burns while in her care.

Porsha Baker,31, was charged with child neglect.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said they were notified of an aggravated child abuse on Aug. 27 after the child was admitted to Wolfson’s Children Hospital for burns to her hands and groin area.

Police said the child’s injuries had gone untreated for weeks.

The report said doctors determined the burns were from an “intentional spill involving an unknown liquid.”

The physicians concluded the victim’s injuries were not an accident and rather the result of physical abuse.

The child’s mother, Rashita Shears, said her daughter was permanently disfigured.

She told Action News Jax her daughter was in the care and custody of Baker for approximately one month so she could focus on her job.

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Police said Baker told Shears her daughter accidentally hurt herself, but downplayed the significance of the injuries.

However, the injuries were severe enough to land the 3-year-old in the ICU at Shands Gainesville Burn Center.

Shears said her daughter has undergone two skin grafts and will likely need more down the road.

Shears said had she known the extent of the injuries she would have picked up her daughter right away.

The report said Baker blamed the burns to the child’s hands on a candle warmer. She also told police the injury to the child’s groin was the result of bruising from a fall, despite doctor’s opinion that it was a second-degree burn.

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Shears said DCF took her children away from her. She said her two boys are with relatives who plan to fight for custody of the child once she is out of the hospital.

Action News Jax also reached out to DCF to figure out what happened with Baker’s children. The agency said they are looking into it.