Sacramento sheriff’s detectives arrest mother wanted in 2019 death of her 13-month-old child

Sacramento County sheriff’s detectives on Thursday arrested a mother who had been a wanted fugitive for more than a year after failing to appear in court to face trial on a child endangerment charge in the 2019 death of her 13-month-old daughter.

Regjanah Nash, 25, was back in custody Friday at the Sacramento County Main Jail, where she was being held without bail.

The felony child endangerment charge faced by Nash stems from an incident on Aug. 2, 2019, when Nash left the toddler in a bathtub with her 2-year-old disabled sister and her 8-year-old cousin to watch both small children, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday in a news release.

Sheriff’s officials said Nash left the children in the home to run errands with her sister, and the adults returned to the home later to find the 13-month-old girl unresponsive in the bathtub.

“Rather than calling 9-1-1, Nash and her sister transported all three children to a local hospital in their vehicle,” sheriff’s officials said in the news release.

The toddler was pronounced dead at the hospital by staff shortly after arriving, authorities said.

Nash initially told sheriff’s child abuse detectives that she placed her child in the bathtub, and then she needed to rush out of the home after a frantic phone call from her sister who was having an emergency, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff’s officials said the mother also told detectives she was out of the home for no longer than 15 minutes but later admitted to leaving the children alone for at least 90 minutes.

After completing their investigation, sheriff’s detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Nash on April 21, 2021. Nearly two weeks later, deputies found Nash and arrested her.

Sheriff’s officials said Nash was released from jail that same day, May 4, 2021, on $0 bail, also known as the emergency bail schedule. California authorities implemented the temporary measure at the time to slow further spread of COVID-19 in jails.

On Feb. 10, 2022, a judge ruled there was sufficient evidence for Nash to stand trial in her daughter’s death. Sheriff’s officials said Nash still remained out of custody pending her trial, and she failed to appear in court on Jan. 6, 2023. The court then issued a warrant for her arrest.

On Thursday, detectives from the sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau found Nash at a relative’s home in Stockton and arrested her.

Nash is scheduled to return Tuesday afternoon to Sacramento Superior Court.