No foul play suspected in death of teen's baby

Month-old child stopped breathing

GLOUCESTER - The month-old son of a Gloucester High School junior died Monday of unknown causes, but authorities do not suspect foul play.

Brayden Silva, who was born Sept. 3 to parents Alexis Silva and Patrick Ross, died after he stopped breathing at the Rockport home of his mother and grandparents, officials said.

Family members rushed Brayden Silva to Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester on Monday morning when they noticed he stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead later that day.

Authorities are investigating the untimely death but do not suspect wrongdoing.

"It does not look suspicious," said Steve O'Connell, spokesman for Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett. "We are still waiting for the final results of the autopsy, but we do not suspect any foul play in this tragedy."

No one was home at the Silva household when a reporter knocked on the door yesterday afternoon. The baby's great-grandmother, Sarah "Sally" Anderson Olsen, said at her Gloucester home yesterday that the family did not wish to comment.

Children of teen mothers have a higher risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome than those born to mothers older than 20. SIDS, which affects about 5,000 babies in the United States each year, is most common when a baby is between 1 and 4 months old, and is more common in boys than girls, according to information from Children's Hospital Boston.

Gloucester High made national news over the summer after the school's principal said some of the 17 teens who became pregnant last school year had made a pact to do so.

Alexis Silva and her mother appeared on an Aug. 6 episode of the NBC reality television program "The Baby Borrowers," where they discussed teen pregnancy. Silva denied the existence of a pregnancy pact among Gloucester High School students.

Calling hours will be held Tuesday, and the funeral will follow Wednesday in Gloucester.

The service will be private, for family and friends, the family said.