A Mississippi woman and babysitter has been arrested in connection with the death of a toddler who was recently under her care, authorities say.
Makallie Durham, 23, stands accused of one count of capital murder and one count of felony child abuse over the tragic events that unfolded sometime on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022.
According to the Alcorn County Sheriff’s Office, deputies and emergency medical personnel responded to report of an unresponsive child at a residence on a county road in Corinth, Miss. and arrived there on the night in question just after 9 p.m.
A story by Desoto County News attributes a lengthy run-down of the case to the ACSO and appears to contain partially obscured photographs of the two child victims in the hospital.
Responding deputies say they discovered a 2-year-old boy who was determined to be unresponsive and who appeared to have multiple bruises and marks on his body. He was immediately transported by ambulance to Magnolia Regional Hospital, the agency said.
Also in the house, according to the ACSO, was an 11-month-old baby girl who was found suffering from various unidentified injuries. The girl was also initially transported to Magnolia Regional. Later, both children were transferred to Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.
Investigators were called to the scene of the crime and discovered that the boy and girl were being watched by Durham that evening. The babysitter was found to have an outstanding misdemeanor warrant, the ACSO said, and taken into custody by deputies at that point.
Law enforcement did not share the particulars of that minor offense alleged against Durham.
The defendant was initially detained in the Alcorn County Jail while the investigation progressed, the sheriff’s office said. Public jail records reviewed by Law&Crime, however, show no record of Durham being formally booked into the jail as of this writing.
On Sept. 15, 2022, two days after the arrest, law enforcement was notified that the toddler boy had succumbed to his injuries.
Durham was subsequently charged and remains in the jail awaiting an initial court appearance, according to the ACSO.
The 11-month-old girl is said to be in stable condition.
Details about what led up to the boy’s death are not immediately clear.
Law&Crime reached out to the Circuit Clerk for Alcorn County for additional details and court documents. An official there said the defendant’s probable cause affidavit had not yet been supplied to them.
A message was also left with Alcorn County Sheriff Ben Caldwell but no response was immediately forthcoming at time of publication.
Earlier this summer, at least three babysitters were charged with murder in as many U.S. states after extremely young children died under their supervision. In Wisconsin in July, a man admitted beating a 4-year-old to death. In Georgia in June, a woman allegedly exposed a toddler to fatal levels of various drugs. And, in Michigan in June, a woman allegedly abused a 1-year-old to the point that she caused a fatal brain injury from which he slowly died.
[image via Alcorn County Sheriff’s Office]
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