1-Year-Old Boy Returned to Mother With Third-Degree Burns After Visit With His Dad

A woman named Yailene Caraballo found herself in the burn unit of a Houston hospital after picking up her 1-year-old son Jio from an unsupervised visit with his father, one of the first since the couple separated. Doctors revealed that Jio was covered in second and third-degree burns, most likely from being doused with or submerged in hot water.

Caraballo knew something was wrong when her son’s father, identified as Deshawn Blanks in a Facebook post, reached out to her to let her know that Jio had fallen off a skateboard and scraped his stomach. Following a FaceTime call, Caraballo was sure that Blanks hadn’t told her the whole truth and went to pick up her son.

After seeing the burns all over his body, Caraballo rushed Jio to the hospital, where the two were eventually transported to a nearby burn unit that could give Jio the care he needed, including a potential skin graft to remove the burnt skin.

Since then, Caraballo has been documenting her story on TikTok, where she goes by the name Lissette, and has been posting videos of Jio’s progress over the last week. Millions of people have now seen Caraballo’s videos documenting Jio’s story, from her initial trip to the hospital to the physical therapy days later.

The baby seems to be making good progress, but Caraballo’s friends and family have banded together to ensure she and Jio are taken care of. After posting and promoting a GoFundMe created by Caraballo’s friend, Isabella Donoso, the family was able to raise nearly $80,000 in the first six days of the campaign.

As of this week, Caraballo is on the hunt for a lawyer who can represent her in a case against Jio’s father. Once again, she took to TikTok to get recommendations on a good lawyer in the Houston area who would take on her case. And once again, supporters flooded the video and were able to send Caraballo a list of recommendations.

Jio, who turns two next month, seemed to be doing well in physical therapy based on the videos Caraballo posted on her TikTok page. One video shows Jio playing with blocks as nurses encouraged him to use his right arm, which had a particularly severe concentration of burns, along with his stomach.

The hospital appears to have protected Jio with a thick layer of gauze that allows him to continue having limited mobility while he recovers. There has, as of this week, been no public response from Jio’s father, but the story is still developing and Caraballo’s followers are expecting to know more about Jio’s progress, as well as the status of Caraballo’s legal proceedings, in the weeks to come.