Girl, 10, charged for stomping baby to death

WASHINGTON: A 10-year-old girl has been charged for stomping on a six-month-old baby at a Wisconsin daycare centre, killing him.

On Monday, the girl appeared in court where she was charged with first-degree intentional homicide.

She remains in juvenile custody in lieu of a US$50,000 cash bond.

In Wisconsin, first- degree homicide charges are initially brought in adult court if the defendant is 10 years of age or older, the Star Tribune reported.

The Chippewa County Sheriff’s Department received an emergency call in the afternoon on Oct 30 from a daycare centre in rural Wheaton.

When authorities arrived at the scene, they found the six-monthold boy unconscious and bleeding from his head.

The baby was taken to a local hospital, and then to Gillette Children’s Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. He died on Nov 1.

After the police questioned an adult and three children present during t he t r agic i ncident, Chippewa County Sheriff Jim Kowalczyk said the police named the 10-year-old girl as the prime suspect.

She was holding the boy when she dropped him. When he began to cry, she allegedly stomped on his head out of panic.

“She stated she was holding the child and that’s when she dropped the child,” Chippewa County District Attorney Wade Newell told reporters.

“The child hit his head on a footstool and started crying, and she panicked and didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to get into trouble and proceeded to stomp on the six-month-old’s head.”

A local doctor who examined the baby’s body determined the injuries were not accidental.

In September, the girl was removed from the custody of her biological parents.

The parents appeared with her in court.

The girl was living with her foster parents, who run the daycare centre, at the time of the incident. – The Independent