South Florida's special needs families are finding support with a new program called Project Lifeline, meant to help connect them with resources.

MIAMI, Fla. – The mother accused of first-degree murder in the drowning death of her 9-year-old son will be facing the death penalty. A Miami-Dade grand jury indicted Patricia Ripley of West Kendall this week and prosecutors said the death penalty will be on the table. The 45-year old mother is accused of killing her autistic son, Alejandro, last May. Surveillance video captured Ripley pushing her son into a canal behind the Kendall Acres Condominiums at 103rd Avenue and Kendall Drive around 7:30 p.m. on May 21. Detectives said Ripley admitted to driving to the second location about 8:30 p.m. and pushing Alejandro into the pond-like canal where he drowned.

MIAMI, Fla. – The coronavirus pandemic has stalled a number of cases including the one of the mother accused of drowning her 9-year-old autistic son. On Friday, a quick arraignment in Miami-Dade County Court had Ripley’s attorney telling the judge that her client would enter a plea of not guilty. “For the record, I will enter a plea of not guilty and demand discovery,” Ripley’s lawyer, Susy Ribero-Ayala, said on her behalf during a video conference. The 45-year-old is accused of killing her 9-year-old son, Alejandro, in May after police said she pushed the autistic, non-verbal boy, into a body of water where he drowned. The EvidenceA possible piece of evidence in this case could be surveillance video from the night Alejandro died taken from the area of a West Kendall condominium complex.

MIAMI A Miami woman accused of drowning her 9-year-old autistic son in a canal pleaded not guilty to murder charges at a Friday hearing. Ripley faces charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated child abuse and filing a false police report. Prosecutors have filed a notice to seek a grand jury indictment for first-degree murder, but grand juries have been suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic. Under Florida law, only someone who is indicted by a grand jury can receive the death penalty. The boys body was pulled out of a golf course canal the next morning as police continued to interrogate the woman.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. Detectives used a police dog to continue to gather evidence on Thursday in the case of the mother who is accused of drowning her 9-year-old son in Miami-Dade County. Patricia Ripley reported two men had abducted Alejandro Ripley on May 21st. His mother confessed to the drowning and said he was in a better place, according to the arrest report. Detectives are accusing Patricia Ripley, 45, right of killing her 9-year-old son, Alejandro. Miami-Dade County Court records show Patricia Ripley is set to appear in court for an arraignment hearing at 9 p.m., June 12th.

It shows Patricia Ripley walking with her 9-year-old son Alejandro on the bank of a canal in west Kendall. Neighbors say Ripley and her son then leave. Police say this was Ripley’s first attempt to kill her son, who was autistic and could not speak. About hour later, authorities said she led him to another body of water at the Miccosukee Golf and Country Club. Ripley told detectives that Alejandro was “going to a better place.”She now faces a charge of first-degree murder and attempted murder.

Alejandro Ripley was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. The witnesses helped detectives find surveillance video showing a woman who detectives identified as Patricia Ripley, 45. Detectives grew suspicious when surveillance video showed she was in her car for about 15 minutes before she reported the fake abduction. When detectives confronted Patricia Ripley with the evidence, she said Alejandro was in a better place, according to the arrest report. Patricia Ripley faces charges of first-degree murder and premeditated attempted murder.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A Miami-Dade medical examiner confirmed Monday that 9-year-old Alejandro Ripley drowned last week. “Usually you grab them, yank them out and away you go.”Detectives are accusing Patricia Ripley, 45, right of killing her 9-year-old son, Alejandro. (Miami-Dade Department of Corrections and Miami-Dade Police Department)The man said he didn’t think anything nefarious was going on when he saw the boy Thursday night sitting in the canal. The witness said Alejandro was sitting in the water that was chest high. Police said Ripley took her son to another canal and led him into the water to drown about an hour after that incident.

Usually you grab them yank them out and away you go.He described seeing the boy Thursday night sitting in the canal. The witness said the water was about up to the childs chest. Thats when the witness called out to the boy, not realizing Alejandro was autistic and non verbal. Whyd you leave the kid there? "Patricia Ripley, left, faces murder charges in the death of her 9-year-old son, Alejandro. The witness said what he saw Thursday night was an opportunity for Patricia Ripley to make a better choice.

The 45-year-old mother faced a judge Saturday on charges of murder and premeditated attempted murder in connection with the death of her son, Alejandro Ripley, whose lifeless body was found floating in a canal Friday. “We love Alejandro and I don’t agree with whatever they’ve said about my wife,” a sobbing Aldo Ripley said Saturday. Patricia Ripley, left, faces murder charges in the death of her 9-year-old son, Alejandro. Police now allege that Ripley had pushed her son into another canal an hour before a second attempt. Our community is shocked by the killing of 9-year-old Alejandro Ripley allegedly by his own mother, Patricia Ripley, presently charged with Attempted 1st Degree Premeditated Murder & 1st Degree Murder &No Bond.