An 11-year-old boy testified on Monday that he saw his stepfather, 31-year-old murder defendant Joseph Ray Daniels, beat 5-year-old victim Joe Clyde Daniels with a whip in 2018. The boy said he heard a loud bang later in the night and saw the younger Daniels, known as “Baby Joe,” on the floor.
Defendant Daniels threatened to kill him if he did not help, said the witness identified Alex, who was 8 years old at the time. Alex opened a vehicle trunk for his stepfather, who instead carried Baby Joe away, according to this story.
The beating happened after Baby Joe, who lived with autism, peed on the floor, the 11-year-old said.
#JosephDaniels – Alex says he and Baby Joe slept in Big Joe (grandpa) bed because he was on the road. Baby Joe got up and peed on the floor. Alex went and told the def. “He came in and beat Joe.” Alex breaks down and the judge called for a break. @LawCrimeNetwork #BabyJoe
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) June 7, 2021
#JosephDaniels – Alex testifies he heard a loud bang. He sat there for a couple of minutes then went out of the bedroom. He saw Baby Joe on the floor. Then saw Joseph take Joe outside and lay him in the yard. @LawCrimeNetwork
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) June 7, 2021
Authorities have said that Joseph Ray Daniels is responsible for the April 4, 2018 disappearance and presumed death of Baby Joe in Dickson County, Tennessee. The defendant first claimed the child left the house alone, then changed the story to say he killed the boy, but he also gave two different stories on where investigators could find the body. Baby Joe’s whereabouts remain publicly unknown. The defense is arguing the confession was coerced.
Alex and Baby Joe were half-brothers. Their biological mother, Krystal Daniels, 30, is charged with aggravated child neglect. Krystal Daniels allegedly admitted to being at home when Joseph Ray Daniels beat the child to death, but later recanted, claiming this was a coerced confession.
The defense worked to highlight inconsistencies in the stories that Alex told over the years. The 11-year-old acknowledged on the stand that he previously told a “fake” story.
#JosephDaniels – Alex has given different accounts of what happened that night. He was 8 yrs old. He told investigators that the defendant told him he killed Baby Joe but now testifying saying Joseph never told him that. @LawCrimeNetwork
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) June 7, 2021
[Screengrab of Joseph Ray Daniels via Law&Crime Network]
