Tampa mom accused of strangling daughter released to mental health treatment facility

Video above: Reactions after Tampa mom accused of strangling daughter to death

TAMPA, Fla. ( WJET/WFXP ) — Rotesha Silveus, the Erie mother charged in May with the murder of her 18-year-old daughter, Natavia Sanders, was released from custody on October 3 and has been involuntarily placed in a mental health facility.

Silveus was charged with first-degree murder, aggravated battery causing great bodily harm, resisting arrest without violence and resisting arrest with violence. After a motion filed by the defense, a mental competency exam was ordered.

On June 19, the medical examiner found that Silveus was not mentally fit to stand trial, and it was recommended that she be committed to the Florida Department of Children and Families, which would place her in a mental health treatment facility until the court orders her release.

Silveus was initially charged with domestic battery, but in late May, the charge was reclassified to a felony first-degree murder charge after the medical examiner’s office determined the cause of death was a homicide, and detectives said Sanders’s injuries were consistent with strangulation.

In the early morning hours of May 11, dispatchers in Tampa, Florida, received a call from 18-year-old Natavia Sanders, who told the dispatcher that she was “strangled” and had “just woke up from being passed out.” According to the criminal report affidavit, she soon informed dispatchers that her mother was “outside my room.” What sounded like a door opening was heard, and seconds later, the call was disconnected.

As dispatchers attempted to reconnect with the caller, police were dispatched to the residence. When Tampa police officers arrived, they found that both the front and back doors were locked. After knocking for six minutes, the mother, later identified as 38-year-old Rotesha Silveus, answered the door.

After being asked to step outside to talk to officers, she responded, “For what? Nah,” before attempting to close the door. Officers were able to block the door with their foot and after a brief struggle, Silveus was detained. At that point, police began to survey the home.

Officers located 18-year-old Natavia Sanders, who was found to be unresponsive. Police began performing life-saving measures before she was transported to a local hospital in critical condition. It was soon determined after two tests that Sanders showed no signs of brain activity and was pronounced dead on May 13.

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