A 9-year-old Hopkins girl spent a week in intensive care from an asthma attack that left her brain dead. Now the girl's parents are charged in her death, after her father failed to refill her inhaler and her mother ran a steam bath instead of rushing her to the hospital.
Anthony and Rachel Modrow both face one count of second-degree manslaughter for the alleged neglect and endangerment of their child, Amy Lynn Modrow, who they called "chicken nugget," according to her obituary.
The parents, both 34, were booked into Hennepin County jail late Wednesday and made a first court appearance Thursday. District Judge Shereen Askalani set conditional bail at $25,000 and said they would be placed on house arrest if they posted bail.
"On the face of this, it looks like the line between the accident and charges is very fine," said Hennepin County Public Defender Tanya Bishop at Anthony Modrow's court appearance. "Of course, if he could go back in time there could be other steps he took to avoid this, but we're here now."
Rachel Modrow wiped away tears as a public defender asked Askalani to set bail at zero. But the judge said that given the seriousness of the charges and public safety concerns, both parents needed to post bail.
Charges say the Modrows ignored Amy's health concerns and the advice of family and friends who urged them to take her to the hospital. Medical experts said the child would have had a much better chance of surviving with earlier intervention.
According to the charges, Amy went to a sleepover at a friend's house Feb. 9 but wasn't feeling well. The friend told her mother multiple times that night and through the morning that Amy was having trouble breathing and that it could be an asthma attack. The mother noticed the prescription for Amy's inhaler was for her grandmother; Amy said she used it because her parents didn't have a car.
The mother didn't see that the inhaler was helping curb the asthma attack. She called Anthony Modrow, who according to the charges sighed and handed the phone to Rachel Modrow, who told the mother to bring Amy home. The mother responded that Amy was not faking it and offered to take her to the doctor, but the Modrows declined the offer, charges state.
Amy was wheezing, breathing heavily and asked to go to the hospital the morning of Feb. 10. Detectives searched her phone and found the 9-year-old had texted her grandmother around 7 a.m. that morning, asking for her medication.
A family friend got a call from Amy's aunt around 10 a.m. saying that Amy needed help. When the family friend arrived at the Modrows', Amy's skin was blue, she couldn't raise her arms and she was crying, charges say. Rachel Modrow ran a steam bath for Amy, but the family friend insisted the girl needed to go to the hospital.
The family friend carried Amy to the parking lot of the Modrows' apartment complex on Westbrooke Way and called 911. Phone records show that a 911 call wasn't made until 10:40 a.m., more than three hours after Amy's parents were told she was suffering from an asthma attack, charges state.
Hopkins police and medics arrived, but they couldn't find a pulse. Amy was taken to HCMC and stayed in the ICU until Feb. 17, when doctors pronounced her brain dead from a lack of oxygen.
Five days before she was pronounced dead, the Modrows created an online fundraising page to help with medical expenses. The parents shared updates on Amy's failing condition leading up to her death and raised nearly $10,000 before the fundraising page apparently was removed.
The Modrows' neighbor, Aaron Titiner, 31, said in an interview that he didn't donate to the fundraiser because he was suspicious and felt the parents were somehow at fault. He said the Modrows' apartment was unkempt and the parents were always in front of a screen. When he saw Amy playing outside on her scooter or listening to music on her phone, she was always alone, he said.
"I've never seen two people seemingly care less for their child," Titiner said.
Titiner said that when Amy was taken away in the ambulance, her parents hardly showed any emotion.
"Once she died, it was just like there's no way that they're getting off scot-free," he said.
Another neighbor, Barb Waller, said she lives across the hall from the Modrows. She said Amy played with friends and her parents were engaging."They have always been good parents of Amy. They are attentive, and loved Amy."
