Charles CJ Tyson Jr 9 Months Old

Charles "C.J." Tyson Jr

2005 - Apr. 27, 2006

Delray Beach,

Florida, USA

 

9-month-old Charles "C.J." Tyson Jr. was the son of Shameka Mosley and Charles Tyson, He died at Delray Medical Center after his father hurled him out of a moving car, slammed his tiny body on the hood after picking him up and then tossing him into a canal.

His father, Charles Edward Tyson, 20, received only a 40 year prison sentence for the cruel death of his baby.

DELRAY BEACH, Fla., April 28, 2006

Baby Thrown In Florida Canal

Dad, 20, Accused Of Killing Baby In Fight With 17-Year-Old Mother

(AP) A man was charged Thursday with first degree murder after police said he tossed his infant son from a car, slammed the boy onto the vehicle's hood and then threw him into a canal.

Charles Edward Tyson, 20, also faces charges of aggravated child abuse, child endangerment and violating a restraining order, Delray Beach police spokesman Jeffrey Messer said. Messer said Tyson admitted tossing his son into the canal.

"Our detectives were just dumbfounded," he said.

Tyson was held Thursday in the Palm Beach County jail and set to appear in court Friday morning.

Tyson and the child's mother, Shameka Mosley, 17, were driving with the 9-month-old infant early Thursday when Tyson accused her of cheating on him, according to an arrest report.

Mosley stopped the car she was driving and Tyson tossed the child out of the window where he "landed face down in the dirt," according to the report. The man then grabbed the boy by the leg and "in a swinging motion slammed the infant's head onto the hood of Mosley's vehicle," the report said.

Tyson then sped off in the car with the infant, and later stopped and tossed the child into a canal, the report said.

Authorities found the boy floating nearby and attempted to revive him. The infant, Charles Edward Tyson Jr., died a short time later at Delray Medical Center.

"Tyson stated he was aware the infant landed in the canal because he heard a splash," the report said.

Mosley had a restraining order against Tyson issued in December after a domestic violence incident.

Plea deal set in infant's death

40-year sentence issued for throwing baby into canal

February 26, 2008|By Nancy L. OthM-sn Staff Writer Sun Sentinel

Because he has been forgiven by two of those he hurt, Charles Tyson was spared the possibility of the death penalty Monday and instead sentenced to 40 years in prison for tossing his 9-month-old son into a Delray Beach canal nearly two years ago.

Prosecutors had charged Tyson with first-degree murder for the April 2006 death of 9-month-old Charles Jr., but both the baby's mother and grandmother played an instrumental role in Monday's resolution of the case, pushing for a sentence less than life and opposing a death sentence altogether.

Shameka Mosley, the baby's mother, and her mother, Joanne Mosley, have an "amazing capacity" to forgive and expressed their desire for a plea rather than a trial, prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek said.

Tyson, 22, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and aggravated child abuse and will receive credit for 671 days he has served in jail. He also will be placed on probation for 10 years when he is released.

Shameka Mosley declined to speak at the hearing, but her mother read a statement on her behalf.

"I just want to say that I know Charles loved his son, Charles Jr.," Shameka Mosley wrote. "Being a Christian, I forgave him, but I won't forget."

Delray Beach police Detective Gene Sapino, the arresting officer on the case, told Circuit Judge William Berger that his department was satisfied with the sentence. Later, outside the courtroom, Sapino recalled Tyson's confession.

On the way home from the hospital, where the couple had taken the baby because he was sick, Tyson and Mosley began to argue. Tyson told Sapino that Shameka Mosley said the baby might not belong to Tyson, prompting him to stop the car and throw the baby out of the window. He picked his son up by the leg and slammed him against the car, then drove off with the baby, leaving Mosley by the side of the road. Tyson drove about a half-mile, then threw the baby into a canal and returned to tell Mosley she'd better get Charles Jr. before the alligators do, Sapino said.

In his letters to Shameka Mosley from the jail, Tyson has shown no remorse but has often expressed his desire to reunite with Mosley when he is released, said Sapino, who reviews copies of the letters.

But Tyson's attorneys say the 22-year-old with a ninth-grade education has struggled with anger-management issues since boyhood and is sorry about what he did.

"He's glad it's over," Assistant Public Defender Adrienne Ellis said. "He's very remorseful, he has been since it happened. It's a tough situation. It's tough on both sides."

Ellis said the Mosleys' ability to forgive was "phenomenal" and played a big part in the resolution of the case.

"He's been anxious to get it over with," she said. "He just wanted some closure. ... Both sides have suffered a huge loss."

Ellis declined to provide details about Tyson's mental condition, but Tyson told Berger that the last time he took medication for any mental illness was in 2003.

Sylahs Kayin Gather 9 Months Old

Sylahs Kayin Gather



February 2, 2009 - November 25, 2009

Columbus, OH



Sylahs Gather, 9 months - hospitalized after being found unresponsive in the bathtub by his father, and died November 25, 2009 Harold Warner, 24 - father of the abuse victim chared with murder Columbus, OH   Man indicted in death of 9-month-old son The Columbus Dispatch - 12/05/09 A Columbus man accused of killing his 9-month-old son has been indicted. Harold C. Warner, 24, was indicted yesterday on two counts of murder and single counts of felonious assault and endangering a child in the death of his son, Sylahs Gather, on Nov. 25, according to the Franklin County Clerk of Courts. Warner had told Columbus detectives that he briefly left his son in a water-filled bathtub and, when he returned, the child was not breathing. He was at home alone with the child at the Winding Creek Apartments, 4609 Refugee Rd., on the Far East Side. The child's mother is Ashley Gather. An autopsy by the Franklin County coroner showed that the infant had been recently assaulted and died of internal injuries, including a damaged liver. The charges also said the baby had been shaken.   Bail set for man charged in death of 9-month-old son Columbus Dispatch - 11/28/09 The mother of a 9-month-old boy who died of internal injuries Wednesday interrupted courtroom proceedings with an emotional outburst this morning to ask that the man charged with killing the child not be allowed to harass her. Ashley Gather said Harold C. Warner had called her three times from the Franklin County jail. She said Warner was trying to intimidate her. Standing behind a Plexiglas partition, she demanded that Franklin County Municipal Judge W. Dwayne Maynard stop the calls. Sylahs Gather, Gather and Warner's son, died early Wednesday at Nationwide Children's Hospital, authorities said. Warner, who requested protective custody, was ordered by Maynard not to have any unsupervised contact with children or with the child's mother. Veronica Hill, the child's great aunt, said Ashley Gather was too distraught this morning to discuss the situation further.   Judge Requires Suspect In Child Death To Stay Away From Kids NBC4 Columbus - 11/28/09 The suspect in the death of a 9-month-old child will have to post $25,085 bond to be released from custody on a charge of murder. If he succeeds in raising that amount, a judicial order issued at arraignment Saturday morning will also forbid him any unsupervised contact with children, and ban all contact with the mother of the dead infant. The suspect is Harold C. Warner and the child, Warner’s son, Sylahs Gather. Police reports indicate the child was in his father’s care when he was found in a bathtub, not breathing.   Father Arrested In Death Of 9-Month-Old NBC4 Columbus - 11/25/09 Nine-month-old Sylahs Gather was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital on Tuesday night, after his father stated the child was found in a bathtub unresponsive. The incident occurred in the 4000 block of Refugee Road in southwest Columbus. The child later died while being treated at the NICU. An autopsy determined that the child died as a result of being assaulted. The father, Harold Warner, 24, of Columbus, was later arrested and charged with Gather’s murder. Dad pleads guilty in infant's death Deal recommends 15 years in prison on lesser charges December 24, 2010 - THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH An East Side man accused of murdering his infant son pleaded guilty yesterday to involuntary manslaughter and endangering children. Harold Warner, 25, was charged with two counts of murder and one count each of felonious assault and endangering children after his son was taken to Nationwide Children's Hospital in full cardiac arrest on Nov. 24, 2009. At first, police thought Sylahs Gather, who was 9months old, might recover. But he died early the next day in the intensive-care unit. Warner told police he briefly left Sylahs in a water-filled tub at an apartment on Refugee Road. When he returned, the boy was not breathing. An autopsy contradicted his version of events. According to prosecutors, the baby had a lacerated liver, bleeding behind the eyes, severe injuries to his kidneys, bleeding in his brain and two broken ribs that had begun to heal. Warner had been home alone with Sylahs. As part of a plea agreement, prosecutors recommended that Warner be sent to prison for 15 years. The other charges were dropped. "If this had gone to trial, we would call a witness who would testify that the manner of death was accidental," said Warner's attorney, Mitch A. Williams. But there will be no trial. Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David E. Cain is to sentence Warner on Jan. 21. PLEA AGREEMENT 25-year-old gets 10 years for death of his infant son Saturday, January 22, 2011 02:52 AM BY JOHN FUTTY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Harold C. Warner called 911 in November 2009 and frantically told a dispatcher that he had found his infant son not breathing after leaving him unattended in a bathtub in their Far East Side apartment. He performed CPR at the dispatcher's direction while waiting for paramedics, but the 9-month-old boy died the next morning at Nationwide Children's Hospital. When an autopsy determined that Sylahs Gather died of trauma to the head, chest and abdomen, Warner was indicted on charges of murder, felonious assault and child endangering. The 25-year-old was sentenced yesterday to 10 years in prison at a hearing in which he took responsibility for the death but continued to contend that it wasn't intentional. "I would never hurt my child, despite the way things look," he said in Franklin County Common Pleas Court. Warner pleaded guilty last month to involuntary manslaughter and child endangering. Franklin County prosecutors offered Warner the plea bargain that dropped the murder case after his defense attorney submitted a report from a forensic pathologist who disagreed with the autopsy findings by Dr. Kenneth Gerston of the county coroner's office. Dr. Thomas W. Young, a former medical examiner in Missouri, wrote that the death was caused by "complications of near drowning," which can result in blood-clotting that appears to be the result of trauma. He also concluded that some internal injuries could have resulted from Warner performing "adult-style CPR" on the infant. Gerston reported that the child suffered a lacerated liver, bleeding in the brain and eyes, and kidney injuries. "The case would have come down to a battle of experts," defense attorney Mitch Williams said. One family member spoke in court and expressed outrage at the plea agreement. Veronica Hill, whose niece Ashley Gather is the baby's mother, said the case should have been taken to trial to seek a murder conviction. "Sylahs Gather was a human being, and his life was taken deliberately, heinously and violently," she said. Warner and Ashley Gather were engaged at the time and lived together. Assistant County Prosecutor Robert Letson said the plea bargain was offered after weighing "the pros and cons" of taking the case to a jury trial. "By no means do we concede that this was an accident," he said. "We believe that it is murder." Judge David E. Cain also took exception to Warner's characterization of the death. "It was still gross neglect," he said. At the same time, Cain said he understood the decision to offer Warner a plea bargain. "I've seen hundreds of jury trials, and often it is a roll of the dice," he said. Cain sentenced Warner to 10 years for involuntary manslaughter and five years for child endangering, to be served concurrently. Warner was credited with 423 days served in jail since his arrest.

Emilliano Terry 3 Years Old - Cleveland, Oh

Emilliano Terry

 

 

3-year-old

Nov. 26, 2012

Cleveland, OH

 

 

20-year-old Camilia Terry, mother of slain 3-year-old Emilliano Terry, was arraigned on an aggravated murder charge and held in lieu of a $2 million bond.

Prosecutor Brian Murphy told the judge that Emilliano died of blunt force trauma to the head. His skull was fractured, according to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office, Murphy said. Camilia Terry at first told investigators that her son went missing from Kossuth Park. After further questioning, authorities began to doubt her story.

The search for Terry's son ended when FBI agents found a boy's body at a trash transfer station in Oakwood. The body was in a trash bag inside two other bags that had been picked up Monday from a Dumpster near Terry's apartment on Buckeye Road near East 130th Street, about a half-mile from Kossuth Park. The body was disfigured in the compacted trash and was also decomposed. Witnesses last saw Emilliano alive Wednesday, Nov. 21. Terry was arrested after Emilliano’s body was discovered.

 

 

Camilia Terry Indicted in 3-Year-Old’s Death

Posted on: 11:18 am, December 4, 2012, by Lindsay Buckingham and Kara Sutyak, updated on: 06:34am, December 5, 2012

http://fox8.com/2012/12/04/medical-examiner-releases-toddlers-cause-of-death/

 

 

CLEVELAND — Camilia Terry was charged in a 10-count indictment Monday for the death of her 3-year-old son, Emilliano.

 

According to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, between November 20 and November 26, Terry, 20, of Cleveland, purposely caused the death of her son.

 

On November 25, Terry reported her son missing, resulting in various law enforcement officials searching for the child throughout the Cleveland area.

 

Interviews following the discovery of the toddler’s body revealed that Terry admittedly sent police searching for the child knowing she had placed his body in the garbage earlier that week.

 

Charges include two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of murder, two counts of endangering children, one count of felonious assault, one count of tampering with evidence, one count of making false alarms and one count of gross abuse of a corpse.

 

Earlier on Monday, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office released the cause of death for Emilliano.

 

A spokesperson said the toddler died from blunt force trauma to the head, torso and extremities.

Terry is being held behind bars on $2 million bond. She’s also been ordered to have no contact with her two other children.

 

Pernel Jones & Sons Funeral Home will handle Emilliano Terry’s services. Further details, including the date of the funeral, were not immediately released.

 

Roderick "RJ" Arrington 7 Years Old- Las Vegas

Roderick "RJ" Arrington

 

7-year-old

Nov. 30, 2012

Las Vegas, NV

 

Markiece Palmer, 34, and Dina Palmer, 27, are both charged with child abuse, murder and child neglect. According to the arrest report, 7-year-old Roderick "RJ" Arrington, Jr. moved in with his mother and stepfather less than three months ago. He previously lived with his father and grandmother in Illinois.

The arrest report details the child's injuries, including open abrasions on his buttocks, severe bruising to his thighs, marks and bruises on his back and shoulders and evidence of previous beatings.

Markiece Palmer told police he and Dina Palmer spanked the child November 27th, because he lied about reading a Bible verse. Markiece Palmer said Roderick was spanked again the next day for not finishing his homework. In the arrest report, Markiece Palmer said the boy balled up his fists and "ran at him". That resulted in Markiece shaking the child. He also told police Roderick slipped at the bottom of the stairs and hit his head on a table and the floor. According to the police report, Arrington had been beaten on consecutive days with objects that included a belt, spatula and wooden paddle and had bruises and open wounds on his body. The Palmers were arrested and booked at the Clark County Detention Center on Thursday.

They are being held without bail. 

law enforcement:

Mother, stepfather arrested in beating death of 7-year-old
 Facebook posts depict a loving, religious family environment

By Paul Takahashi  lasvegassun.com

Published Monday, Dec. 3, 2012 | 4:32 p.m.

Updated Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 | 12:53 p.m.

7-year-old dies a victim of child abuse

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Roderick Arrington was beaten to death by his parents in late November 2012 after he failed to read the Bible and do his homework, according to Metro Police.

 

Roderick "RJ" Arrington, a second grader at Roundy Elementary School, was allegedly beaten to death by his parents in late November 2012, according to Metro Police.

courtesy of Facebook

Dina and Markiece Palmer are shown in a photo from the Facebook page of Dina Palmer.

Las Vegas Metro Police Department

Dina Palmer's booking photo

Las Vegas Metro Police Department

Markiece Palmer booking photo

 

 

A 7-year-old boy was beaten to death by his parents last week after he failed to read the Bible and do his homework, according to Metro Police.

The boy's stepfather, Markiece Palmer, 34, and the boy's mother, Dina Palmer, 27, were arrested and charged with murder, child abuse and neglect in the beating death of Roderick Arrington, a second-grader at Roundy Elementary School. A hearing on the murder charges is scheduled for 7:30 a.m. Thursday in Las Vegas Township Justice Court.

On Thursday, Arrington was transported to University Medical Center because he was unresponsive, according to an arrest report released Monday. The arrest report said officers were called to the hospital after medical officials observed severe bruising and massive brain swelling, but a news release issued Tuesday said officers were called at 8:45 a.m. Thursday to a residence in the 3100 block of South Decatur Boulevard to check on an unresponsive 7-year-old with significant injuries.
Arrington was admitted to the UMC's pediatric intensive care unit in critical condition. A doctor reported that Arrington suffered from strokes and fixed pupils and had bruises on the arms, abdomen, back, legs, thighs and buttocks.

"The buttocks had fresh open wounds that appeared to be from being whipped," the report said, adding that some of the bruises had left some tissue dead.

Arrington had surgery but died sometime after he was admitted to the hospital. Metro, in its news release Tuesday, said the boy died Friday.

Upon interviewing the Palmers, police uncovered the following, according to the arrest report:
About two to three months ago, Arrington moved to Las Vegas from Bloomington, Ill., where he lived with his natural father and maternal grandmother. This was the first time Markiece Palmer, the boy's stepfather, met Arrington, whom he described as an "outgoing, favorable and a good kid."
Markiece Palmer initially stated that he spanked Arrington twice, police said.

The first time was about one month after Arrington moved to Las Vegas, and it was for lying, the stepfather told police. The second time was Nov. 28, when Arrington allegedly told his stepfather that he hated him and that he was not his father.

However, over the course of the interview, Markiece Palmer admitted to police that he hit Arrington on multiple occasions using various household items such as his belt, a spatula and wooden paddle, as well as with his hands.

Prior to each beating, Markiece Palmer said he talked with Arrington's natural mother, Dina Palmer. Although she initially denied her role in the beatings, the mother was present and participated in each beating, Markiece Palmer told police.
Last Tuesday, Markiece Palmer admitted to police that he spanked Arrington because he allegedly lied about reading a chapter in the Bible. Dina Palmer struck Arrington on his buttocks with both a belt and her hand, the report said.

The next day at about 9:30 p.m., Markiece Palmer found Arrington asleep in bed without finishing his homework. Arrington allegedly lied about doing his homework, so Palmer said he struck Arrington on his buttocks with his belt, the report said.

Arrington then allegedly ran up to his stepfather with balled fists. Markiece Palmer — who is 6 feet, 1 inch tall and weighs 150 pounds — then grabbed the boy by his arms and shook him hard. Dina Palmer said she also struck Arrington with a belt and a paddle two to three times, the report said.
During the altercation, Arrington reportedly ran down the stairs and fell, hitting his forehead on a table, Markiece Palmer told police. The stepfather then told Arrington to take a bath, after which he put cocoa butter on the open wounds on the boy's buttocks, the report said.

Arrington, who told his father he felt like throwing up, then went to bed. He never woke up, the report said.

Markiece Palmer found the breathing, but unresponsive, boy in his bed between 6 and 6:45 a.m. on Thursday, the report said. Dina Palmer called their pastor, who told them to call an ambulance.
The mother called 911 at about 8 a.m., a little more than an hour after the stepfather found the boy unresponsive in bed, the report said.

When asked about the bruises and scars on her boy's body, Dina Palmer admitted to police the marks were from "whoopins" from both her and Markiece Palmer, the report said.

Police recovered a broken broom stick with what appears to be blood, belts, cords, spatulas and bloodied clothes from a warrant search of the Palmer residence, the report said.

The Palmers were arrested and booked at the Clark County Detention Center on Thursday. They are being held without bail.

The horrific allegations of child abuse stand in stark contrast to the couple's Facebook pages, which seemingly show a loving and religious family devoted to Roderick Arrington, nicknamed "RJ."
On one Facebook photo — apparently of Arrington and his niece — Markiece Palmer wrote: "My babies they make me happy. GOD bless the children!!!"

On another photo of the boy and another child, Dina Palmer wrote: "I love them with heart and soul!!!!" A Facebook post from October 2010 reads: "Lord please guide my steps.... I'm trying 2 do better.... I wanna do better 4 my son, my family, myself, 4 you LORD!!!!!!!!"

Several Facebook friends of Dina Palmer posted childhood photos of Arrington, which solicited responses such as "r.i.p" and "sorry for your loss."

According to an online press release, Markiece Palmer is a pastry chef and independent filmmaker who released a 23-minute short film last year called "Broken," which was based on his life experiences. Palmer grew up in rural Arkansas, studied business management in Washington and wrote a book, "Pour." After the book sold 2,000 copies, Palmer "suffered from the loss of a job, a failed relationship, and (was) stripped of his most valuable material possessions," according to the bio.

In June, Markiece Palmer married Dina Palmer, who is originally from Bloomington, Ill., according to her Facebook. By the fall, Arrington moved from Bloomington to live with the couple in Las Vegas.

Clark County School District officials said a team of grief counselors will be stationed at Roundy Elementary School this week to help students and staff cope with Arrington's death. School officials sent home a letter on Monday notifying families about the death.

There were 2,171 substantiated child abuse incidents reported in Clark County in 2010, according to the latest Nevada Kids Count study. Of those incidents, there were 13 child abuse cases that led to a child's death.

Children ages 2 and younger had the greatest risk of abuse and neglect, but about 20 percent of all child abuse cases in Nevada occur between ages 6 and 9. Boys are more likely to be abused than girls during the first nine years, but the pattern reverses in later years.

Nationally, more than five children die every day as a result of child abuse, according to the National Children's Alliance, an advocacy group for victims of child abuse.



Vegas mom, stepdad charged in child’s beating death
Posted: Dec 03, 2012 7:36 PM ESTUpdated: Dec 04, 2012 10:07 AM EST

Posted By Craig Huber, Web Managing Editor  http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/20251011/vegas-mom-stepdad-charged-in-childs-beating-death

 

 

LAS VEGAS (FOX5) -

Metro police on Thursday arrested a Las Vegas mother and stepfather for the beating and eventual death of a 7-year-old boy.

 

Roderick Arrington Jr., 7, was pronounced dead on Nov. 30 at a hospital. He had been admitted in critical condition and was unresponsive. Metro police believe he took a severe beating at the hands of Markiece Palmer, 34, and Dina Palmer, 27.

 

The two are charged with child abuse, neglect and murder.

 

"The first thing you think of is what could he have done to deserve that kind of punishment?" said Angel Gray, a neighbor in the area of Desert Inn Road and Decatur Boulevard.

 

Police said the child came to live with the Las Vegas couple just a few months ago, after residing with his father in Bloomington, IL.

 

Police believe the child was subjected to repeated instances of abuse.

 

"Nice, normal people," Gray said. "My daughter and their son, RJ, played together. He'd come to our house, ask us for rides to school."

 

Markiece Palmer told police that on Wednesday, Nov. 28, he took off his belt, tied it in a loop and struck Roderick Arrington Jr. before shaking him. Markiece further told police that the child then ran down a flight of stairs, slipped and hit his head on a table before falling backwards on the floor.

 

Dina Palmer also admitted to striking her child with the same belt.

 

"I'm trained to know when a child is being abused, but (there were) no signs," said Gray, who is a preschool teacher. "He was very talkative, friendly, well-mannered."

 

Police discovered marks on the child and Dina Palmer admitted to having given him "whoopins."

Some of the reasons for those "whoopins" included failure to complete homework and failure to read Bible passages.

 

Markiece and Dina Palmer are currently in Clark County Detention Center.

 

According to a letter sent to parent on Monday, Roderick Arrington Jr. was a second grade student at Owen Round Elementary School.

 

Copyright 2012 KVVU (KVVU Broadcasting Corporation). All rights reserved.

 

 

Dashawn Harris 5 Years Old

Dashawn Harris

5-year-old

Dec. 1, 2012

Philadelphia, PA

 

Child Abuse

Philly police discovered Dashawn Harris‘ body in his mother’s home around on Saturday Dec. 1. His boy reportedly showed signs of abuse: cigarette burns were found on his chest and the rest of his body was bruised. The boy was rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The child’s mother, Lashay Patterson, 23, and her boyfriend, Christian Patrick, 25, were arrested and charged with murder after several hours of questioning by the police. Patrick allegedly became angry with Dashawn while trying to teach him to read and write and then punished the boy by beating him with a belt and burning him with a hairdryer. The boy was home-schooled.

 

 

Photos of mom, boyfriend charged in child murder

Monday, December 03, 2012

Pictured: LaShay Patterson and Christian Patrick along with the victim, DaShawn Harris

 By KENNETH MOTON   6abc.com

NORTH PHILADELPHIA - December 3, 2012 (WPVI) -- A mom and her boyfriend have been charged with murder in the death of her 5-year-old son in North Philadelphia.

It was just after 1:00 a.m. when police found the lifeless body of the child, Dashawn Harris, inside his mother's home in the West Poplar Apartments in the 600 block of North 13th Street.

 

Investigators say Dashawn had obvious signs of abuse, including bruises on his body along with cigarette burns on his chest.

 

He was rushed to Hahnemann University Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Lashay Patterson, 23, and her boyfriend, Christian Patrick, 25, have been arrested and formally charged with murder. They were arrested on Saturday after being questioned for several hours.

Photos of the suspects were released by police on Monday morning.

 

Sources say Patrick became angry with the boy while trying to teach him to read and write, beating him with a belt and burning him with a hairdryer.

 

Dashawn's family on his father's side stood in disbelief for hours after they learned of his death.

 

"I can't believe she did that," said Grace Fitch, little Dashawn's paternal grandmother. "Shay was just the sweetest person you could meet and when she got with this guy she just started getting distant."

 

Dashawn's paternal aunt, Tracy Merriweather, lives right next door and said she saw incidents of domestic violence between the mother and boyfriend.

 

Family members believe Dashawn's 3-year-old brother, who also lived in the apartment, was being abused as well.

 

He's now with his distraught father who said he was not aware of what was happening in the home.

State legislator Curtis Thomas, who represents the district, was so appalled he came to the apartment complex on Saturday night looking for answers.

 

"We have too many situations where babies are at risk and at risk for things that we can control," Rep. Thomas said.

 

Action News contacted the Philadelphia Department of Human Services on Saturday evening, but a spokeswoman couldn't say if the agency had any cases involving the family.

(Copyright ©2012 WPVI-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

 

 

 

5-Year-Old Boy Dies After Mom, BF Allegedly Torture Him To Death

Dec 3, 2012 31  By NewsOne  

 

A 5-year-old Philadelphia boy is dead after his mother and her boyfriend allegedly tortured him to death, WPVI-TV reports.

Philly police discovered little Dashawn Harris‘ body in his mother’s home around 1 a.m. on Saturday. His boy reportedly showed signs of abuse: cigarette burns were found on his chest and the rest of his body was bruised. The boy was rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The child’s mother, Lashay Patterson, 23, and her boyfriend, Christian Patrick, 25, w

From L to R: Dashawn Harris, 5, was allegedly tortured to death by his mother, Lashay Patterson, 23, and her boyfriend, Christian Patrick, 25. Both have been arrested and charged with murder.

ere arrested and charged with murder after several hours of questioning by the police. Sources told WPVI-TV that Patrick became angry with Dashawn while trying to teach him to read and write. He allegedly punished the boy by beating him with a belt and burning him with a hairdryer. The boy was home-schooled, according to Philly.com.

 

 

 

Police: Mother, boyfriend in custody for death of 5-year-old Dashawn Harris

Metro Philadelphia City Desk

ALEX WIGGLESWORTH

Published: December 02, 2012 1:43 p.m.

Last modified: December 02, 2012 2:53 p.m.

 

Police yesterday arrested a North Philadelphia mother and her live-in boyfriend for allegedly killing the woman's five-year-old son.

Lashay Patterson, 23, found her 5-year-old son Dashawn Harris unconscious early Saturday morning inside the home she shared with boyfriend Christian Patrick, 25, on the 600 block of North 13th Street, police said.

The child was rushed by medics to Hahnemann University Hospital, where he died shortly before 1:30 a.m. He suffered burns and bruises to his body, according to investigators.

Patterson and Patrick were arrested on Saturday for their alleged involvement in Dashawn's death. The two were each arraigned around 8 p.m. and charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, endangering the welfare of children, possession of an instrument of crime and reckless endangerment.

Both suspects' preliminary hearings have been scheduled for Dec. 19.

Patrick is no stranger to the court system – he was in March of 2008 found guilty of criminal conspiracy and manufacturing, delivering or possessing drugs with the intent to manufacture or deliver. He was sentenced to two years of probation and a maximum of one year's treatment at a long term residential in-patient substance abuse program, according to court documents.

Patrick the next year pleaded guilty to simple assault, for which he was sentenced to a maximum of 18 months of probation. Bench warrants were issued for Patrick's arrest due to probation violations twice in 2009 and twice in 2010. The court filed multiple delinquency notices in 2011 and in 2012 for Patrick's alleged failure to pay court fees.