Nationwide — Tiffany Woods, an African American mother from New Orleans, Louisiana, who was convicted of killing her baby after she desperately tried to feed him cow’s milk during Hurricane Katrina, was denied parole after 18 years in prison. She now must wait five more years before reapplying.
Woods, 43, was convicted of second-degree murder in 2008 after her 5-month-old son, Emmanuel, died. Born prematurely at three pounds, Emmanuel had a rare condition that made it hard for his body to process certain fats. He needed constant care and frequent feedings to stay alive.
Emmanuel was discharged from the hospital just weeks before Hurricane Katrina hit. Woods and her family first stayed in a sports arena, then a motel, and finally a rented house as the storm approached. Amid the chaos and shortages, she struggled to care for her fragile infant.
When Emmanuel began throwing up formula, Woods ran out of vouchers for baby food. Desperate, she decided to give him cow’s milk. Doctors warn that children under one year should not drink cow’s milk, but Woods said she acted out of survival.
“I didn’t know what to do. I made the devastating decision to change my child’s milk. And he was taking his milk,” she said, according to Atlanta Black Star. “I thought he was doing better, but he wasn’t doing better. I didn’t know how to go about anything but survival mode.”
Emmanuel died in November 2005. Woods and her then-husband, Emmanuel’s father, were both convicted of murder and given life sentences without parole. In 2023, her sentence was partially commuted, making her eligible for parole after serving 18 years.
On February 10, Woods’ parole was denied after a single “no” vote on a three-member panel. Board members praised her rehabilitation and low risk of reoffending, but Leone Fitzgerald, representing victim services, argued that more could have been done to save Emmanuel during the crisis.
“No rational person could look at that… poor emaciated baby and not do something. Take him to the emergency room, take him to the doctor. Take him to a fire station… and drop him off where he would have a chance,” Fitzgerald said. “I think there were a lot of options that these people chose not to take.”
Woods can reapply for parole in five years. In the meantime, her four other children, who were placed in foster care after her incarceration, continue to grow up without her. Her eldest, Nie’John, recalls the day Emmanuel died and insists that his mother did try CPR while calling 911.