The Bronx woman accused of throwing her 6-month-old baby to her death from a window in a sixth-floor apartment was a licensed day care provider who until recently cared for children in that home.
The woman, Tenisha Fearon, 27, was charged with murder on Friday. The case is the third in recent months in which babies have been thrown to their deaths from windows in their New York City homes — two by mothers who had jobs directly related to the welfare of children.
At Ms. Fearon’s arraignment, Judge Kim Wilson of Criminal Court in the Bronx ordered that the mother undergo a psychiatric evaluation and that she be held without bail in protective custody.
Ms. Fearon was silent as the prosecution described the events on Thursday at 2200 Tiebout Avenue, near East 182nd Street.
The baby, Junilah Lawrence, was naked and alive when Ms. Fearon first dangled her out the sixth-floor window, the prosecution said. Before letting the child go, witnesses said, Ms. Fearon was screaming wildly, talking about how all of her children would die.
Ms. Fearon’s three other children, ranging in age from 4 to 10, watched in horror, according to prosecutors. As people realized what was happening, many gathered on the streets below and on rooftops nearby, pleading with her to stop and begging her not to harm the other children.
The police arrived around 2 p.m., broke down the door to the apartment, and found the other children lying on the floor, also naked. On Friday, the three were placed temporarily in foster care.
Ms. Fearon’s friends and relatives were trying to cope with what happened. Until recently, they said, she had shown no signs of mental illness or disturbed behavior.
Until April she was taking care of other children, running a small day care operation from her apartment, according to relatives and state officials.
“Tenisha Fearon was a registered family day care provider from 2013 to 2015 with no complaints or violations,” said Steve Flamisch, a spokesman for the State Office of Children and Family Services. “Her registration expired on April 30, and she did not apply for renewal. Her program is closed.”
Ms. Fearon is currently out of work, and relatives said she quit offering day care after the birth of her fourth child, saying that her pregnancy aggravated her diabetes. It is a disease that runs in her family — her mother died about five years ago after several coma-inducing diabetic shocks.
Those close to Ms. Fearon said her children were the center of her life. She dressed them well and took them out five days a week to play.
Juliet Fearon, Ms. Fearon’s sister, said that the two had spoken on Monday and that Ms. Fearon seemed to be looking for some sort of relief.
“She said she’d become an on-again Christian,” she said.
But there were no obvious signs that she was approaching a breakdown.
Louella Hatch, who has known Ms. Fearon since she was born and described her as “like a daughter,” said she visited with her on Wednesday.
“She was cleaning her house,” Ms. Hatch said. “And when you’re cleaning, you’re normal to me.” But as she left the apartment, Ms. Fearon said something strange about Jesus and the devil.
“I thought, ‘Why is she telling me that when I go to church every Sunday?’” Ms. Hatch said. It was an odd comment, she said, but hardly suggested what was to come.
Ms. Fearon had a court-appointed lawyer for her arraignment, but it was unclear who would represent her going forward.
As police officers escorted Ms. Fearon from the 46th Precinct station house on Friday morning, she appeared disheveled and heavily sedated, staring straight ahead as she addressed Ms. Hatch, who was there to offer support.
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