IL - Taquan Willis, 14 mos, beaten to death, Cahokia, 26 Aug 2012

[peeples]

http://fox2now.com/2012/08/31/st-clair-county-charges-nine-year-old-with-murder/?hpt=ju_bn5

VERY short article, too little to copy and paste

 

[Filly]

Taquan A Willis was beaten to death in a house he shared with his two siblings and his mom and other family members.


Poor baby. Only 14 months old.

Tauquan eulogized at link


http://bossip.com/639106/jesus-take...r-beating-a-14-month-old-baby-to-death-43081/

 

[JoeFromLB]

The boy has been charged with first-degree murder, and the state has taken custody of him. A psychiatric exam has been ordered.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap...SQM-yw?docId=9ae60a41e07f4705904bfcd75507daf6

 

[nervous_nellie]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap...SQM-yw?docId=9ae60a41e07f4705904bfcd75507daf6

defense attorney Bill Walker said the boy's mother and grandmother both died years ago and that the other adults in his life were detained after being charged with child endangerment. The Belleville News Democrat (http://bit.ly/TNAw4f ) reports that prosecutors alleged those three adults left the toddler unsupervised with four other children.

So, the Defense Atty. is saying that the adults of the house had been arrested for child endangerment from a different/prior incident which left the toddler alone with the 4 other children? huh? its the states fault? this is truly horrible, but im so sick of hearing that its the states responsibility to raise everyone's children... idk...maybe im mis-read this article. i think i saw a video, maybe it has more info??

 

[Confusion]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap...SQM-yw?docId=9ae60a41e07f4705904bfcd75507daf6

defense attorney Bill Walker said the boy's mother and grandmother both died years ago and that the other adults in his life were detained after being charged with child endangerment. The Belleville News Democrat (http://bit.ly/TNAw4f ) reports that prosecutors alleged those three adults left the toddler unsupervised with four other children.

So, the Defense Atty. is saying that the adults of the house had been arrested for child endangerment from a different/prior incident which left the toddler alone with the 4 other children? huh? its the states fault? this is truly horrible, but im so sick of hearing that its the states responsibility to raise everyone's children... idk...maybe im mis-read this article. i think i saw a video, maybe it has more info??

The toddler was with his 2 and 3 year old siblings, a 12 year old and the 9 year old. His mother, her friend and her friend's boyfriend were there, but not in the same room. The 3 adults were arrested for child endangerment for not supervising the kids. The mother did apparently go check on them when she heard something (twice). I'm wondering why the 12 year old wouldn't say something if the kids were all in the same room.

 

[nervous_nellie]

The toddler was with his 2 and 3 year old siblings, a 12 year old and the 9 year old. His mother, her friend and her friend's boyfriend were there, but not in the same room. The 3 adults were arrested for child endangerment for not supervising the kids. The mother did apparently go check on them when she heard something (twice). I'm wondering why the 12 year old wouldn't say something if the kids were all in the same room.

thanx for breaking that down for me...way too many disorganized/disconnected family/non-family dynamics for me to absorb today..lol.. im on low charge lol....its clear now.:blushing:

 

[Hopeful One]

WOW!! Nine???

Sounds like he may have had a rough life. Tragedy all around.

 

[Rayemonde]

Taquan Willis


http://m.stltoday.com/news/local/me...5316-987f-5860b0533000.html?mobile_touch=true

 

[Rayemonde]

Nov 2012:

An Illinois judge has ordered the state to take custody of a 9-year-old boy who is accused of fatally beating a toddler in late August...

According to CBS affiliate KMOV., the infant's mother, 22-year-old Alisha Johnson, was charged Wednesday with five counts of endangering the life of a child. Identical charges were filed against 31-year-old Melissa Wilbourn and 42-year-old David Hollis.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/state-c...-murder-in-infants-death-illinois-judge-says/

 

[Rayemonde]

May 2013:

On August 31, 2012, Dr. Daniel Cuneo examined the respondent as to his fitness to
stand trial and ultimately found that he was unfit. Cuneo's psychological examination
revealed, inter alia, that the respondent had an IQ of 78 and intellectually functioned at the
level of a seven- or eight-year-old. Cuneo diagnosed the respondent with borderline
intellectual functioning and dysthymic disorder (chronic depression) and opined that the
respondent's mental illness, age, and developmental immaturity substantially impaired his ability to understand the nature and purpose of the proceedings against him and to assist in his defense. Cuneo further opined that even if provided with a course of psychological treatment, there was not a substantial probability that the respondent would attain fitness within a year...

On December 19, 2012, following a hearing
during which it was disclosed that DHS had determined that the respondent was not a danger to himself or others, the trial court entered an order placing the respondent in the custody of a great-aunt.

March 2013:

On May 6, 2013, Cuneo evaluated the respondent and concluded that he was legally sane. In his evaluation report, Cuneo noted, inter alia, that the respondent was able to "appreciate the wrongfulness of severely beating a 14-month-old" and
could further appreciate that "beating a child could cause the child's death."

When asked what had happened to T.W. on the night in question, the respondent told Cuneo that D [the 11 year old] had hit the baby and thrown him against a wall. D then ordered the respondent to hit the baby, and when he refused, D hit the respondent in the face. The respondent stated that he had then hit T.W. one time out of fear that D would hit him again if he did not.

Edna testified that when she asked the respondent what had happened to T.W., he had stated that he and the infant had been alone in the playroom and that no adults were home at the time. The respondent explained that T.W. had been crying, so he punched him twice in the head and once in the side.

 

[Rayemonde]

Oh no, this is awful the 11 year old said the adults had all gone out for the night. The baby and the 9 year old were in the playroom alone together. The 9 year old brought the baby into the bedroom, and the 11 year old saw the baby was not well and having trouble breathing. He called his mom and told her, but the adults didn't come home for an hour and a half. Then they went straight to bed without checking on the baby, who was still alive at this point then someone went to check on the baby around 2am, and finally dialled 911.

The 11 said he'd lied to LE at first and said the adults had been home all along, because he didn't want his mom to get into trouble

 

[Rayemonde]

Forsyth indicated that it took "significant force" to cause T.W.'s injuries and that the injuries were consistent with injuries that could have been sustained on or about August 22, 2012. Forsyth acknowledged, however, that it was not possible to determine exactly when or how T.W.'s injuries had been inflicted or whether or not he had been shaken.


¶ 27 On June 5, 2013, the trial court entered an order finding that the State had sustained
its burden of proving the respondent guilty of first-degree murder beyond a reasonable doubt.

The court therefore determined that the respondent was not not guilty of the offense and that his supervised treatment period could thus be extended up to the maximum period of five
years.

Not not guilty?!

 

[Rayemonde]

How NOT to interview a child! Or, how to extract a false confession...

There are numerous problems with the interviews. At the Miranda stage, when asked if he understood that whatever he said could be used against him, the respondent indicate he did not understand. After further explanation, the respondent only nodded yes. Detective Adams told him he had a right to remain silent, but also that he should not keep quiet when questioned.

During the course of questioning, Detective Adams made the following statements to the respondent:

"I think you are afraid," "I think you did hit him," "you're not going to jail," "I think
there is something you are not telling me," "nobody's going to jail," "I think it was an
accident," a "total accident," "I don't think D hit him," "I think you did," "either
way you're not in trouble," "I think you made a mistake I really do," "I need to tell you
that you made a mistake," "I think what happened was an accident," and "forget
everything we talked about."

 

[Rayemonde]

Dr. Cuneo explained:
“[Respondent]’s age and subsequent cognitive and developmental immaturity coupled
with his Borderline Intellectual Functioning substantially impair his ability to understand the nature and purpose of the proceedings and his ability to assist in his own defense. [Respondent] is only nine years old. His cognitive abilities are only at the seven to eight year old level. His thinking is very concrete. He could not grasp the adversarial roles in the court even after I broke them down into simpler term. He kept insisting his ‘daddy would help him in court’ and could not understand the role of a defense attorney. He could not comprehend that there would be a state’s attorney who would attempt to convict him. Due to his age and limited intellectual abilities he could not meaningfully cooperate with his attorney, much less assist in his own defense. He could not grasp how a person was found innocent or guilty.”

Dr. Cuneo also diagnosed respondent as suffering from dysthymic disorder (depression)
and stated that respondent would benefit from inpatient psychiatric hospitalization and
possibly antidepressant medication. Dr. Cuneo noted that records from the Missouri
Department of Social Services, Children’s Division (Children’s Division), disclosed that three
hotline calls had been made by respondent’s teachers in 2011 and 2012 after respondent
arrived at school with suspicious injuries (scratches on his face, bruises on his right forearm, and a bruised cheek and small cut on his lip)....


The Children’s Division’s report also noted that Melissa would discipline respondent by hitting
him with a belt. Dr. Cuneo stated in his report:
“It is uncertain how much of [respondent’s] anger and depression stems from his mother’s death, his possible scapegoating at home as the Missouri Children’s Division speculated, the possible domestic violence in the home, or his possible physical abuse at home as suggested by the three incidents that led the Missouri[ ] Children’s Division to refer this family [for services]. These issues could best be addressed in an inpatient setting.”...


As respondent gets older and his brain changes, he will have better abstract thinking. Dr. Cuneo concluded that it is very possible that respondent could be restored to fitness in five years...


According to Dr. Cuneo’s written report that was filed with the trial court, a representative from
Chestnut Mental Health Services advised Dr. Cuneo that the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder was based on a series of trauma at respondent’s house, i.e., respondent reported being repeatedly bullied, burned, and beaten by D. and living in fear of D.

http://caselaw.findlaw.com/il-supreme-court/1701855.html