A St. Louis man has been arrested after police say he fatally assaulted his girlfriend’s five-year-old son while she was at the hospital giving birth to her third child.
The deceased, identified as Jamarion Delancy, was blind, developmentally disabled and wore leg braces as he had limited movement, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The suspect, 24-year-old Yoshuah Dallas, is being held at the St. Louis County Justice Center on a $250,000.00 bond.
Per a statement from the St. Louis County Police Association, the victim’s mother, Aunyae, checked in to the hospital on November 17 after going into labor with her third child, leaving her disabled son, Jamarion, and his seven-year-old sister under the care of Dallas in their North St. Louis County apartment. The following morning, Dallas took Jamarion, who was in critical condition after he assaulted him, to the St. Louis Children’s Hospital. He later succumbed to his injuries and passed away.
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An autopsy carried out on the victim revealed he sustained a blunt force trauma to the abdomen, leaving him with a lacerated liver and a broken rib, the Post-Dispatch reported. Dallas, who admitted Jamarion was under his care when the injury occurred, was arrested and charged with abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death. He also received an additional charge for having a firearm on him despite being a felon. Dallas faces up to life in prison if convicted of the former charge.
Describing the incident, St. Louis County Police Association said the victim was helpless during the assault as he “had no way to defend himself against the suspect’s attack” due to his disability. The Post-Dispatch reports investigators were left so devastated by the incident that they set up a GoFundMe to help raise funds for Jamarion’s funeral as well as other family needs.
“This case was so egregious and sad,” Joe Patterson, a retired detective and the executive director of the association told the news outlet. “Unfortunately detectives who handle these types of crimes see this level of violence on a daily basis, but when it involves a child who is blind, developmentally disabled and can only walk using braces, it was extremely devastating for these detectives.”
The crowdfunding has so far raised over $32,000 out of its $35,000 goal at the time of this report.
“Jamarion’s death has left an impact on the members of the St. Louis County Police Department and we feel compelled to do more, especially at a time of year when families typically gather and celebrate the holidays,” the statement by the association said.
“We feel for Aunyae at this incredibly difficult time where she has to bring a baby home from the hospital, while planning her son’s funeral and also trying to care for Micaiah [Jamarion’s sister] who was in the apartment when this horrible act occurred – all with extremely limited resources.”
