Plaquemines Parish Grand Jury hands down indictment on woman for killing toddler with hand sanitizer

A Plaquemines Parish grand jury Wednesday (March 26) handed up an indictment charging a Belle Chasse woman with killing her sickly toddler by injecting hand sanitizer into his feeding tube.

The grand jury also indicted Erika Wigstrom with attempting to kill the child more than 14 months ago, on the same day the child's father allegedly gave him rum.

Just two weeks after she was booked with the homicide, Wigstrom, 20, was formally charged with first-degree murder, in the Jan. 24 death of 17-month-old Lucas Ruiz. She also was charged with attempted first-degree murder, accused of giving Lucas an alcohol-based perfume on Oct. 26, 2012.

Although charged with a capital offense, Wigstrom will not face a potential death sentence. "The state will not seek the death penalty," Plaquemines Parish District Attorney Charles Ballay said just moments after filing the indictment in a Belle Chasse courtroom at midday Wednesday.

If convicted as charged, or even if a jury finds her guilty of second-degree murder, Wigstrom would face a mandatory life sentence in prison with no chance of probation, parole or suspended sentence. The attempted murder charge carries a sentence of up to 50 years in prison. Her arraignment on the new charges is May 5.