A 24-year-old babysitter in New Kensington is facing felony charges after a 3-month-old in her care was discovered with multiple broken ribs and bruises that medical staff said lined up with abuse, according to prosecutors. Police were pulled into the case in January after a ChildLine report, and the infant was rushed to a hospital, where doctors flagged injuries they said did not match the babysitter’s explanation of a couple of clumsy accidents at home.
According to the Westmoreland County District Attorney's Office, Alexzandrea Derry of New Kensington is charged with aggravated assault of a victim under six and endangering the welfare of children, as reported by CBS Pittsburgh. Police and caseworkers from the Westmoreland County Children's Bureau interviewed Derry at her residence, where she told them she had been watching the baby for two nights and described a string of accidents while babysitting.
Investigators say injuries were not accidental
Authorities said medical staff found the child had seven broken ribs and bruising to the face, injuries that doctors said were consistent with physical abuse, according to CBS Pittsburgh. Derry allegedly told investigators she slipped on a box spring and, in a separate incident, tripped while carrying the infant in a swing. Police say those stories did not line up with what doctors were seeing on scans and exams. A drug screen taken during the investigation reportedly showed THC and cocaine in Derry’s system.
How ChildLine reports move to police
The case landed on New Kensington police desks after a ChildLine report in January. In Westmoreland County, those hotline reports are first routed to the county Children’s Bureau, which handles intake and coordinates with local law enforcement, the county explains. The bureau investigates allegations, refers cases for potential criminal charges when warranted, and connects families with services during inquiries, according to the Westmoreland County Children's Bureau.
County prosecutions and context
The New Kensington case arrives as the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office has been publicly emphasizing its pursuit of serious child-abuse prosecutions. Earlier in May, a jury convicted an adoptive mother in Delmont in the 2023 death of her 5-year-old son, a case that prosecutors highlighted as part of their focus on crimes involving harm to children, as reported by WPXI.
Legal consequences
Derry’s charges fall under Pennsylvania statutes that can carry significant prison time if a jury convicts. Aggravated assault is defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2702 and endangering the welfare of children in 18 Pa.C.S. § 4304, with grading that depends on the nature of the conduct and whether prosecutors allege a course of behavior. Under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code and related case law, an endangering the welfare charge can be a misdemeanor or a felony when it involves a pattern of conduct or a substantial risk of serious injury; those statutes and annotations appear in Pennsylvania’s code resources.
Prosecutors have filed the charges through the District Attorney’s office, and investigators say the case remains active. Court dates and further procedural details were not publicly available at the time of reporting.
