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Milwaukee County Medical Examiner Identifies 5-Month-Old Gabriel Griffin in Daycare Death

The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office has identified 5-month-old Gabriel Griffin, who was found unresponsive last Thursday at a home daycare near 56th Street and Mill Road. An autopsy returned an undetermined cause of death, and police say foul play is not suspected but the investigation continues.

Milwaukee County Medical Examiner Identifies 5-Month-Old Gabriel Griffin in Daycare Death

MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office has identified the infant who died last week at a home daycare on the city's northwest side as 5-month-old Gabriel Griffin.

Gabriel was found unresponsive last Thursday at the home daycare near 56th Street and Mill Road, according to the medical examiner's office. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

An autopsy was performed, but the medical examiner's office said the cause of death came back as undetermined — a classification that means the available evidence was not sufficient to establish a specific cause. Such findings are not uncommon in infant deaths, where sudden unexplained death can leave pathologists without a clear medical explanation.

Milwaukee police said foul play is not suspected, but officers are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death. No further details about the investigation have been released.

Gabriel's funeral is scheduled for Thursday.

The death has shaken a community already attuned to the fragility of infant care. Home daycares — small, often unlicensed or lightly regulated operations run out of residences — are a critical source of child care for working families in Milwaukee, but oversight varies widely. State records show that some home-based providers operate with minimal inspection, a gap that child care advocates have long warned can leave parents with little information about safety standards.

It remains unclear whether the daycare where Gabriel was found was licensed or certified by the state. The medical examiner's office and police have not released additional details about the facility or the people present at the time.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Milwaukee police.

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