A babysitter’s boyfriend allegedly punched a 14-month-old girl to death before telling police: “When I smoke, I want to play.”
First responders were dispatched to the residence on the morning of 23 June to deal with an unresponsive child.
They gave Ky’meria Key’moni German first aid, but she was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
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The autopsy revealed blows to her face and head — which had caused her brain to bleed and swell — as well as a fractured femur.
Ky’meria and her twin brother had been in the care of Deric Demond Young the night before.
The City of Tallahassee Police Department, Florida, described him as the “boyfriend of the woman hired to watch the child”.
Local media say the original babysitter is a cousin of Ky’meria’s mother.
She allegedly left the girl in Young’s care so she could go to work, as reported by Need To Know.
When questioned, Young, 25, initially denied causing any harm to the girl, but he eventually confessed to punching her with his fists.
Young – who has a one-year-old daughter of his own – told police that minutes before the attack, he had smoked cannabis.
According to the probable cause affidavit, he “said something to the effect of ‘When I smoke, I want to play.’”
He was arrested on 24 June and has been charged with homicide murder while engaged in aggravated child abuse and cruelty towards a child.
Ky’meria’s mother, Nickaiya Walker, wrote on social media: “Being strong is hard. I’m scared. I’m lost. My baby is really gone. Why her? Why me?
“I needed my baby here with me and her brothers. I never imagined going through something like this. A casket should never be that small.”
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