Former Henrico NICU nurse accused of abusing babies allowed to see brother’s children as part of bond changes

HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- As part of recent changes made to her bond, former Henrico Doctors' Hospital nurse Erin Strotman is allowed to see her brother's two children while she faces 20 charges related to abuse of babies in the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Strotman was in court for a status hearing on Wednesday, May 28, resulting in a modification to her bond that now permits visits with her niece and nephew, who are both under eight years old.

The visits will be supervised, and the children's parents must be able to see and hear them at all times. When making this modification, the court highlighted the occupation of Strotman's sister-in-law as a board-certified behavioral analyst.

Strotman's defense argued that as part of her job title, Strotman's sister-in-law is a mandatory reporter of any evidence of abuse to the proper authorities, and swore under oath during the hearing that she would do so.

These bond modifications come while Strotman is currently facing 20 charges relating to felony malicious wounding and felony child abuse after multiple babies in the NICU unit were found with "unexplainable fractures" throughout 2023 and 2024.

VDH finds Henrico Doctors’ NICU failed to prevent abuse of premature babies

Henrico County Commonwealth's Attorney Shannon Taylor was outside the courthouse shortly after the status hearing concluded, sharing additional details about the Commonwealth's view towards these bond modifications.

Taylor said the Commonwealth is still not comfortable with the idea of Strotman having contact with minors, regardless of her relationship to the children.

"We shouldn't just accept that relationship as being a protection of the children," Taylor said.

When talking about Strotman's relationship with her children, Strotman's sister-in-law stated in court, "basically, she's their best friend."

The defense expanded on this by stating that "the concern is they're a very close family," and the time apart has caused "hardships on the family."

Due to the nature and severity of the charges presented against Strotman, the Commonwealth maintains that Strotman should never have been released from confinement at the jail in the first place.

Mother speaks out on baby’s stay in Henrico Doctors’ Hospital’s NICU, says all limbs were fractured

The Commonwealth also discussed the impact of this case on the families -- many of whom were in the courtroom on Wednesday -- of the several infants found with fractures and other signs of neglect.

The only other changes made to Strotman's were in relation to the technicalities of her existing house arrest -- she is now allowed to go out on her front porch and back deck.

As of the time of reporting, there are no upcoming court hearings for Strotman from now until her trial date set for Feb. 9, 2026, until Feb. 20, 2026, although Taylor said there is the possibility for that to change depending on discussions surrounding evidence, witnesses or stipulations.

Click here for more information and further in-depth coverage of Strotman's case timeline.