Woman accused of killing her cousin, 9

Suspect allegedly sat on victim until she went into cardiac arrest

A Florida woman is facing a murder charge after, authorities say, she punished her 9-year-old cousin by sitting on her, causing the child to go into cardiac arrest.

Veronica Posey, 64, told investigators that her niece, Dericka Lindsay, had been misbehaving, so she decided to sit on top of the child as punishment. Minutes later, Dericka said she couldn’t breathe. She was unconscious by the time Posey stood up, according to an arrest report from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.

Dericka, who was just a little over 3 feet tall, weighed 74 pounds, the report says. Posey weighs 320 pounds, more than four times the child’s weight.

The incident occurred about 1:30 p.m. Saturday in a home in Pensacola, Fla.

Dericka’s mother, Grace Smith, 69, told investigators that she was having problems with her daughter’s behavior, so she called Posey, her niece, to help discipline the child. It’s unclear from the arrest report, which has several redacted portions, how long Posey sat on the child.

But according to the Pensacola News Journal, Dericka ran toward an armchair after Posey struck her with a ruler and a metal pipe. Her father, James Smith, 62, told officers that Posey sat on her in the armchair for 10 minutes before the child said she couldn’t breathe. But Posey didn’t immediately stand up after Dericka complained - and sat on her for two more minutes.

Posey told investigators that she called 911 and performed CPR after she realized that her cousin was unconscious.