Tampa woman arrested after police say she killed her 4-year-old son

Tampa police have arrested a woman they say murdered her 4-year-old son.

Arayia Hudson, 36, was arrested shortly before 7:30 p.m. Monday on charges of first-degree murder while committing aggravated child abuse, the police department said in a news release.

At 4:37 a.m. Saturday, Hudson called 911 from a home in the 8400 block of North 15th Street and said her son Joseph was not moving. She performed CPR until police arrived, according to court documents.

Hudson told police that Joseph began coughing and gasping for air after eating chips and drinking water. Joseph had mucus and water coming out of his nose and mouth, according to court documents.

Joseph was unresponsive when police arrived a few minutes later. They continued to perform CPR on him until Tampa firefighters took him to St. Joseph Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5:51 a.m.

According to court documents, an autopsy revealed that Joseph's cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head and torso.

During an interview at the scene, Hudson told investigators that Joseph had been suffering from a fungal infection on the top of his head for more than a year. She also said his head was swollen after falling off a swing at the park a few days earlier. She added that Joseph had stopped eating, was moving slowly and was wheezing during that time, according to court documents.

An investigator with the medical examiner's office found that Joseph had multiple other injuries, including bruises, scrapes on his torso, swelling of the brain, a torn liver, bruising on his intestines, internal bleeding, dark discoloration around his eyes and injuries to his buttocks and scrotum.

One of Hudson's other sons told detectives he saw his mother kick Joseph in the stomach and push his head against the bathroom wall multiple times Thursday and Friday.

He said Joseph was “nearly unconscious” the two days after he was punched and kicked, according to court documents. He also told investigators he saw his mother hit Joseph with a shoe in the scrotum, mouth, buttocks and hands.

The son was reluctant to speak to detectives because he “didn't want his mother to go to jail,” court documents say.

Another of Hudson's sons told detectives he helped his mother discipline Joseph by holding his arms while she hit him with a shoe.

Investigators found that Hudson tried to cover up the abuse by telling them she was punishing Joseph because he was playing with her feces, according to court documents. In an interview, she told investigators she hit him with a shoe multiple times, causing his head to hit against the bathroom wall. Hudson also said she used tinted sunscreen to cover the bruises around Joseph's eyes.

“This is a heinous crime. Every child deserves to feel safe in their own home and especially with their own mother,” Police Chief Lee Bercaw said in the news release. “The Tampa Police Department is committed to providing justice for Joseph and ensuring the safety of all children in our community.”

Hudson's two other sons were reunited with their fathers, who were not living with her, police said.

Documents show Hudson was being held Tuesday at the Falkenburg Road Jail in Tampa without bail. Prosecutors have filed a motion asking that she be held while her case is pending. A hearing on the motion has not yet been scheduled.