Mesa mother, boyfriend charged with murder after toddler with severe burns dies, PD says
Mesa couple jailed in toddler murder case
A Mesa woman and her boyfriend are accused of first-degree murder and child abuse charges after her 22-month-old child died from severe liquid burns. FOX 10's Taylor Wirtz reports.
MESA, Ariz. - A Mesa woman and her boyfriend are accused of murder after her 22-month-old child was found unresponsive with severe liquid burns.
What we know:
On April 12 at around 9 a.m., Mesa Police officers responded to a home near McKellips Road and Mesa Drive for a report of a child who wasn't breathing.
"Upon arrival, officers located a 22-month-old child unresponsive and suffering from physical injuries consistent with burns," Mesa Police said. "Mesa Fire and Medical personnel also responded and transported the child to a local hospital. Despite lifesaving efforts, the child was pronounced deceased at the hospital."
Mesa Police began investigating what led up to the child's death. After several interviews and search warrants, detectives determined the child "sustained severe liquid burns over a large portion of his body while under the sole care of 21-year-old Alexsander Byrne, the boyfriend of the child’s mother, 24-year-old Artnesia Baptist."
Investigators allege Baptist intentionally hid the child's injuries and failed to get him medical treatment 10 days before his death.
On May 26, the two were arrested and are accused of first-degree murder and child abuse likely to cause death.
Alexsander Byrne & Artnesia Baptist
Dig deeper:
Court paperwork states, "The defendants hid the victim's burn from the victim's biological father, including threatening to kill the father if he showed up. This interaction occurred after the victim was burned but before the victim died."
A search warrant was served at Byrne's home and on his cell phone, Google account, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. His internet search history reportedly showed searches for "can you get first degree burns from a shower," "can 2nd degree burns kill you," and "first degree burns."
"After his arrest in a recorded post-Miranda interview, the defendant admitted he intentionally refused medical treatment for the child because he thought CPS would get involved. The defendant admitted that he knew it was wrong, illegal, caused additional injury to the child, additional pain, and caused the death of the child," court paperwork said.
Mesa mother, her boyfriend accused in her child's death
A Mesa woman and her boyfriend are accused of murder after her 22-month-old child was found unresponsive with severe liquid burns.
What you can do:
"It's hard to even read something like that or imagine something like that happening to such a defenseless child," said Meghan Krein, Director of PR & Communications for Childhelp.
She says fatal abuse is rarely an isolated incident.
"It's better to be wrong about something than to be right and not have done anything and ending in a tragedy," Krein said. "I think we need to stop asking how this can happen and be outraged that this is happening, and instead pivot to how can we prevent this from happening? How can we stop the next child from being harmed or murdered?"
Anyone can call Childhelp’s anonymous hotline at 800-422-4453 to report abuse or get help as a parent. Click here to learn more about getting help.