Parents charged in ‘near-fatal’ abuse of twins
Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer announced charges Monday against the parents of 1-year-old twins for allegedly inflicting near-fatal abuse on both children.
“The actions of these defendants are incomprehensible in their heinousness,” said Stollsteimer in a release. “They are alleged to have intentionally starved their medically fragile infant daughter to near death, and are believed to have inflicted a near fatal head injury on their infant son. Marks of possible strangulation, as well as bite marks, add to the picture of depravity presented by these defendants.”
Armani Coleman, 23, and Zamareon “Zamari” Moat, 18, both of the 300 block of Taylor Terrace in Chester, are each facing numerous counts of aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy, all felonies of the first and second degree.
According to an affidavit of probable cause for both parents written by Chester Detective Rhaheem Blanden:
Officers were called to the couple’s residence on Taylor Terrace for a report of an unconscious infant on Jan. 22.
The child’s mother, identified as Coleman, handed the male twin to the officers and expressed concern over a shower incident where the child may have hit his head, though she provided little detail of what had happened.
Despite shallow breathing and lethargy, the infant was conscious at that time.
Coleman and the child went to Nemours Children’s Health, where she provided a statement that the boy had awoken between 9 and 10 a.m. that day.
She said she changed his diaper and placed him on the floor in the children’s bedroom, then went into the kitchen to get a bottle. Moat, the child’s father, was in the bedroom and the child was crawling toward him.
Coleman said she heard a bang and both parents ran to the boy. They assumed he hit his head on a doorjamb between the kids’ room and the adults’ bedroom.
Moat also gave a statement that he was playing a videogame when Coleman placed the boy on the floor of the kids’ room. He said he looked over and saw the child crawling toward him, then returned his attention to the game when he heard a bump. He said he did not actually see the child hit anything.
Moat said he saw Coleman enter the room with a bottle and pick up the baby, who appeared limp in her arms. He advised her to put some water on the child, who cried in response. Moat called 911 after the boy’s eyes began rolling back in his head.
Dr. Stephanie Deutsch, a child abuse pediatrician at the hospital, found the child had suffered a bilateral facial injury from blunt impact trauma and required neurosurgical intervention to drain a subdural hematoma. The injury was deemed near fatal.
Deutsch opined that these injuries did not match the events described by the parents, and that the child had additionally suffered an upper spine injury that is generally seen in shaking or impact events of abusive head trauma.
Following this diagnosis, the female twin was also transported to Nemours for analysis. Blanden noted she appeared to have several marks and bruises on her face, as well as scratches on her body.
The female twin had been deemed medically fragile at birth. Moat said the marks on the female twin’s face were from tape used to secure an oxygen tube and that she would scratch herself when she became upset.
The pediatrician found the scratch locations on the back of the thighs and in her armpits did not support that explanation, however, and noted that the child did not continue this behavior after being admitted to the hospital.
The female twin was likewise determined to be a near fatality from emaciation and was admitted for refeeding syndrome, a condition in which a person is provided increased nutrition after a prolonged period of malnourishment.
Deutsch found that there had been intentional food restriction to the female twin that nearly killed her. Coleman said that she fed the child 8 ounces of formula every two hours, but the pediatrician found that was not possible, given the
baby’s weight loss.
Both children also exhibited signs that they had been choked or restrained around their necks and the female twin had several areas of adult bite marks on her, including her chest.
Detectives examined electronic devices from the household and found Coleman had texted another person on the morning of Jan. 21 referring to an “urgent situation” involving one of the children and the need for a ride, which was deleted the following day.
Additional text messages from Coleman to her mother stated the male twin had fallen off the bed, but Blanden notes the mattress is on the floor without a frame. Deutsch again found that explanation was not consistent with the injuries the male twin sustained.
Detectives also found there had been several searches conducted on an iPad for “scar removal cream” for toddlers, “scar cover up for baby face” and “what to use to cover up baby scratches.”
Searches on Coleman’s cellphone additionally included: “do you get locked up right ant (sic) for child abuse,” “if my baby have brain damage what do you do,” “what is unloved daughters syndrome,” “can you tell if a baby been choked,” “how do you get rid of a bite mark” and “my baby have a bite mark on her chest.”
Both twins had tested positive for the presence of THC at birth and it was determined the female required oxygen.
Delaware County Children and Youth Services had been involved with the family since November, after they had missed 15 medical appointments. The parents were typically combative or initially refused entry when a CYS caseworker would make unannounced visits.
Caseworker notes indicated the female twin often would not have mandatory monitoring equipment in place during these visits and that the apartment smelled strongly of marijuana on one occasion.
“Even after CYS involvement in the case, and despite multiple offers for assistance, and transportation being arranged, the parents still missed or canceled every single doctor appoint for (the female twin) from November 2023 through her hospitalization,” the affidavit notes. “Had any of the canceled appointments been attended, (the child) could have been assessed and she would have received help. However, Zamari and Armani deliberately kept (the girl) from medical intervention in order to hide the abuse she was enduring.”
Coleman and Moat were preliminarily arraigned Wednesday before Magisterial District Judge Benjamin Johns, who set bail at $200,000 cash for each. They have been remanded to the county jail in Concord awaiting a March 28 pretrial conference before Magisterial District Judge Andrew Goldberg.
No defense attorneys are listed in online court records.
“We are all incredibly grateful to Detective Rhaheem Blanden, the staff of Nemours Children’s Hospital, particularly Dr. Stephanie Deutsch, and Deputy District Attorney Kristen Kemp for their efforts on this case, as well as their tireless efforts every day to protect the children of Delaware County,” said Stollsteimer. “Confronted with this horrible situation, I am reminded yet again of my respect and gratitude for the members of law enforcement and the medical professionals who work every day to prevent this type of tragedy from happening — and to respond and protect our children when these horrific events happen. They are truly doing God’s work.”