Found Deceased MO - Titus Tackett, 3, Killarney Shores, 10 Feb 2016

[Rayemonde]

It was not his truck, IIRC. It was a strangers truck that had been left unlocked at the ParkNRide Lot.

That is strange.... Iirc he was on meth, so maybe it seemed like a good idea to his drug-addled brain? :s Obviously Ellorah couldn't possible have got there by herself, being only 3 weeks old. Either that or maybe he had a shred of remorse and couldn't bring himself to just dump her somewhere - I'm sorry, it almost pains me to write that, because after what he did to her I find it impossible and even offensive to imagine that he could have an ounce of compassion or remorse!

 

[keeponsearching]

I don't understand, was she with her ex or not. And is he the father to all? I read she had a new bf who she has known for a long time. I hate to be skeptical but I've seen moms with new boyfriends.....

I didn't realize Titan just turned 3. Why would he be awake and wonder out?? I don't get it. And if he was looking for his mom, why not turn around and go back in the house.. Frustrating, I feel so sad for Titan. I try with every case to remove my emotions but this one is just to hard. My nephew just turned 4, and he is one handful but I can't even imagine him going outside and not yelling for someone.

 

[Betty P]

As information, this article quotes the sheriff saying the mom and boyfriend were seen by a witness at a Casey's convenience store.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/...cle_96fffe57-63b3-571e-856b-3b96c1909fa3.html

 

[matou]

I suppose LE will look for prints on the outside and inside of the door. Little prints, little person.

Was there snow on the ground? Did anyone notice little footprints?

 

[Ontario Mom]

As information, this article quotes the sheriff saying the mom and boyfriend were seen by a witness at a Casey's convenience store.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/...cle_96fffe57-63b3-571e-856b-3b96c1909fa3.html

The closest one is at 223 E. Madison Street, Ironton. The would have had to drive right past the area he was eventually found - to get there from the boyfriend's father's house. And right past there on the way back. Assuming that's the one they were seen at.

 

[2Hope4]

I still can't imagine it. I've answered the door, and it was a salesman, or whoever, and while standing there talking to the person, my face, hands were numb from the cold.

I keep thinking of adults with hypothermia, hallucinations, delusional thinking, removing clothing, etc before laying down to sleep. It seems at least in the cases of adults, it doesn't take long. I just don't know that a toddler with only a diaper could continue walking, and then have hands that weren't frostbitten so he could open a van door. Closing the door, maybe, if it's one of those you push a button and it closes itself.

 

[AmyPond]

I do too, but I think if my kid were missing, I'd be a bit more specific. Unless I was doing something I didn't want anyone to find out about.

I guess my hang up with it is their child is missing, then found dead, and the parents still refer to the event that led them away from their home, contributing to the circumstances that lead to your child dying, as "an errand". That's the kind of thing you "yada yada yada" to your friend when you are trying to get to the point of a story. It's weird to tell the police/investigators when you call to report your 3 year old missing, that you went on "an errand" while your 3 year old who is known to wander and your baby daughter are left alone at the home with a practical stranger. In the middle of the night.

I used to work as Charge Nurse on a busy med surg floor. I would often run errands at night then as well, because of my schedule. While my children's father was home with the kids. Or if the kids were with their grands. Not with some "friend's dad". You don't leave your kids in the middle of the night with a strange guy to go run run of the mill errands. Something comes up and you have to run out and you have no choice but to leave them with strange guy, maybe, but to still refer to that as an errand as opposed to saying, "I had to run to Walgreens and when I got back my son was missing!"

It's just bizarre to call the cops and say, " I left to go run an errand at midnight and when I came back at 1:30, my son was missing!" Am I the only one that immediately would stop and ask, " where did you have to go?" It's kind of important to give info to the people you want to help find your child. Not gloss over what you were doing.

Unless LO is just not releasing exactly what they were doing on that errand because it's important to the case.

In either case, SOMEONE is being deliberately vague about the errand the mom went on.


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I am sure they were specific with LE. They aren't required to give specifics like that to the general public.

I have a good one for y'all. Today in Arkansas it was in the 40s. My elderly aunt was coming home from getting her hair done and almost ran over a baby. She stopped, got the kid(2years old) out of the road and asked a little boy(5 years old) where his mommy was.(neither kid had a jacket on and both were in short sleeves) He said she was inside. She knocked and knocked no one ever came to the door so she walked inside. Mom was on the couch watching tv as Loud as it could go and said oh her brother(5)was supposed to be watching her. WHAT!!!then she proceeded to tell the 5 year old he was grounded for letting his baby sister in the road....I tried to get her to call the police, but of course she wouldn't. Some people don't need kids.

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Personally, I would have reported that to authorities after I left. That isn't an accident. That's negligence. I would feel too guilty if weeks from now I heard that child went missing or was killed in the road or something.

Yeah, excellent points being made.

All JMO.
There just has to be more to this story than we are privy to at this point. I hope LE gets everything they need to come to some sort of conclusion.

I just get the sense that a story and narrative has been forced out and there seems to be a big rush to end it.

So many things still bug me.
-Still not convinced the boy walked to van, in freezing cold, in his diaper, in pitch dark, almost a mile, and then was able to use his little freezing hands to open door.

-A couple recent FB pictures that almost seemed to forecast events to come

-So many new FB pictures of the boy being loved are being flooded. Which is normally fine but in time of grief I don't think I would have the wherewithal to be on my FB account flooding my site with pictures. Just get a sense that it is being done to drive home a narrative.

-Now the funeral is being setup with requests for everyone to wear super hero shirts. Almost getting a flashback of the Darlie Routier case where she released balloons and sprayed silly string at graveyard celebration.
http://murderpedia.org/female.R/r/routier-darlie.htm

- Still not convinced about the source of the blanket. Would like to hear LE talk about it.

-Still no estimated time of death mentioned

-No mention of condition of feet after walking that far

-Would like to hear more about the supposed "scratches" that coroner seemed to downplay that they said could have been from woods or falling down. He either went through woods or he didn't. If he went through woods then surely his feet would also be tore up. So what is the deal with these scratches? Are they saying he did go through woods? Then feet should have scratches also.

-"Errands" at midnightish. Sorry but IMO it was something else they went into town for.
7 minute car drive which is 15 minutes maximum both ways. So what was happening for 45 minutes to an hour since any store in that small town would be a quick stop.
Could have just been part of the cover story to run into town and be seen away from home area.

-There seems to not be any other family members volunteering to go to news media to vouche for them. Why are we not hearing from Grandpa or other family members in the news?
Could it be they know the real truth and don't want to get in trouble for lying?


I almost get a sense a real accident happened but they would have gotten in trouble if they had told what really happened. I have wondered if maybe they left the baby in their own car seat and he froze to death in their own car and after realizing it they didn't want to get into trouble for being irresponsible. Especially if they had been drinking or doing drugs or something along those lines. That would be scenario where I could see them wanting to do a coverup of it and then they still feel it was a tragic accident. I get the feeling something like this could have happened and could be why they felt the need for a coverup.

I suppose time will tell as we see how LE investigates this futher.

Some people, especially younger ones, are very tied to social media. So it's fairly common to find solace there after a bad event. I am a big picture-sharing person. So it's not strange to me to see people post photos of their child after a loss or something tragic.

If something like this happened to anyone in my family...I can tell you that no close friends or relatives would speak to media. That just wouldn't happen. We aren't those kinds of people. Innocent people shouldn't need family to "vouch" for them just because they are being bashed on social media.

I wouldn't be surprised if the parents went off somewhere to make out or something. Is that strange? Well, to me, yes. But it's not necessarily unheard of. There are many possibilities.

My hinky meter is still not going off much since we know very little facts. And I know all three year olds are very, very different. I just can't in good conscience accuse the parents with so little information right now. Obviously this can all change if we hear more facts.

 

[AbbeyBabbey]

I believe FG is the father of the younger sibling, and acted as a stepfather to Titus when he and mom were together, and perhaps continued in that role because of the ongoing coparenting of Titus' baby sister after the breakup.

His bio father must really not be in the picture to not get mentioned in the obit. JMO

That makes sense as a possible scenario. Thanks!

There are many pictures of Infant-Titus with FG. This, and the fact that "He was born.....to his loving parents Amber Tackett and Frankie Garrett....", tells me that FG was in Titus' life since before Titus was born.

 

[1&2&3]

Usually when it is extremely cold outdoors and with snow on the ground, dogs are taken into the house or garage at night.

Could this be the reason the dogs did not bark and scare the person that put Titus into that van?

 

[1&2&3]

Here's another thought. If Titus did walk to the van, opened, the door and got in, how did he shut the door?

At the point he got into the van, he had to be pretty cold or already in the stages of hypothermia. When you are freezing cold, you shake, therefore making it impossible for this little guy to make his arms work to shut the door. In hypothermia, he would be hot and not worried about shutting the door.

Titus was placed in the van. He died of hypothermia, but the story is missing a piece of the puzzle.

My opinions only.

 

[AbbeyBabbey]

[[[HYPOTHETICALLY]]] if a 3yo had autism and wandered off under the same circumstances as we see here, would that make things make more sense?

http://awaare.nationalautismassociation.org/

"Wandering is the tendency for an individual to try to leave the safety of a responsible person’s care or a safe area, which can result in potential harm or injury.
<snip>
WANDERING DANGERS
Drowning; Exposure; Dehydration; Hypothermia..."

From what I've read, autism sufferers have been known to wander quite a distance and seem to have a great determination to get to wherever they are headed. I'm no expert on autism but IF this were the case here, it would explain a lot!

*TA and Titus living with her parents (Titus would have needed a lot of undivided attention and care)
*Titus' baby sister living with FG at grandpa's house (so she could have a more "normal" life)
*Titus' parents remaining close (geographically and emotionally) after breakup and spending time together at grandpa's house
*Titus wandering off in the middle of the night
*Titus getting as far as he did without "feeling" the pain of the temperature/exposure/physical exhaustion
*Titus seeking refuge by climbing into the van and not attempting to get someone's attention for help (he wouldn't know that he needed help)
*Titus' reported obsession with cars and keys
*Titus 'history' of wandering
*The coroner (Cole) determining that it was a tragic accident without malice [paraphrasing] - he knows the family and would know the circumstances and history
*The family entrusting the coroner/funeral director (Cole) with Titus' final arrangements

Not saying that Titus had autism - just that it would explain a lot if he did.
JMO

 

[pepelepolecat]

Unless we know what kind of doors the van had, I'm not sure we can say definitively that he could or couldn't have opened and shut the doors.

We have auto sliding doors. To open them, all we have to do is pull up on the handle. The mechanism does the rest of the work. To put something in the van, I just pull the handle up, and I can let go and grab whatever -- by the time I turn back around, the door is open. Works the same from the inside (and there're also buttons in the front that can open and shut the doors). IF (this is a big IF) the van had that kind of door, it would be easy for a toddler, even one with cold hands, to open the door, as long as he could reach the handles.

jmo, moo

I'm really not sure what I believe on this one.

 

[relay]

Full obit:

http://www.colefamilyfuneralhomes.com/obituaries/Titus-Tackett/#!/Obituary

"He was born January 24th, 2013 to his loving parents Amber Tackett and Frankie Garrett who survive."

This is just an eerie coincidence and OT, but little Titus's birthday is January 24th, and little Ellorah Rose Warner, who was sexually assaulted and murdered by her own father at just three weeks old, was dumped by her evil father inside a vehicle on January 24th, 2015.

 

[matou]

Who tucked Titus into bed while at the house? Were his pajamas in the house or the van?

 

[relay]

I'm glad they also took a second, nearby vehicle for processing. If by chance the doors were locked or Titus was unable to open the door to that other vehicle, his prints/touch DNA should be on that vehicle as well which would add credence to the theory that Titus did wander away. I am open-minded to any and all possibilities as to what happened until more facts become known, however. Rest in peace sweet Titus .

 

[said_it_and_meant_it]

I think if he was the bio dad the Sheriff would say "the MOM and DAD" were seen at the store not "the MOM and FRIEND".
JMO

 

[AbbeyBabbey]

I think if he was the bio dad the Sheriff would say "the MOM and DAD" were seen at the store not "the MOM and FRIEND".
JMO

You could be right. It could just be that no one in authority wants to call FG "dad" or "father" due to legal ramifications. But DNA doesn't always equal being a parent. If FG's sister refers to FG as Titus' "dad", I'm good with that. He's Titus' dad IMO.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

You could be right. It could just be that no one in authority wants to call FG "dad" or "father" due to legal ramifications. But DNA doesn't always equal being a parent. If FG's sister refers to FG as Titus' "dad", I'm good with that. He's Titus' dad IMO.

FG's sister also referred to Titus as "my niece's big brother". FG is not Titus's bio dad. Not that it matters - he was obviously the only dad Titus knew.

 

[JadeSLeuth]

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154013322784260&set=o.589493424463114&type=3

Lots of interesting comments by D.J.T. at this link, which is shared with Mod's permission (thank-you Bessie).
If true, there are some gaps filled in; but we know to take everything with a grain of salt.

 

[DatelineFan]

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154013322784260&set=o.589493424463114&type=3

Lots of interesting comments by D.J.T. at this link, which is shared with Mod's permission (thank-you Bessie).
If true, there are some gaps filled in; but we know to take everything with a grain of salt.

It seems really unwise for the family to be all over Facebook, making comments. I saw that another family member was doing the same thing yesterday. I don't have permission to share, but it was VERY interesting!