NLV police seek help in search for mother, 7-week-old girl with infectious disease

North Las Vegas police are asking for help finding a 7-week-old girl they say has a severe infectious disease and her mother, who refuses to seek medical treatment for the baby.

Police say the mother, Janette Nelson, delivered the baby Feb. 9 at North Vista Hospital and was discharged a few days later.

Soon after, it was learned the unidentified infant has a severe infectious disease that requires immediate medical attention, said North Las Vegas police spokeswoman Chrissie Coon.

Officials from the police department, the Southern Nevada Health District and Clark County Child Protective Services made contact with Nelson, a 30-year-old North Las Vegas woman, who refused multiple times to seek treatment for the baby.

Coon said Nelson disappeared about a week ago and police believe the baby is in danger.

"She's hunkered down in hiding somewhere. Nobody has seen her," Coon said. "Our concern is for the infant."

Nelson checked into the hospital Feb. 9 under the alias of Rochelle Brown, Coon said.

Christine Skorupski, spokeswoman for Clark County Family Services, said Nelson has a history with the department, but she would not provide details about it or the woman's other children.

"As a mother, she can do with the baby what she wants to the point that she's not endangering the child," Coon said. "She's endangering the child by not bringing it forward."

Coon would not reveal what disease the baby is infected with but said it was passed from the mother and isn't contagious to others.

Nelson is black, stands 5-feet-4-inches tall and weighs 200 pounds. She was last seen in the area of Civic Center Drive and Cheyenne Avenue.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Nelson or the baby is urged to contact Detective Dave Molnar at 633-1779 or Crime Stoppers at 385-5555.

Contact reporter Maggie Lillis at mlillis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0279.