KEY POINTS

  • The police arrested Yoshuah Dallas, 24, in connection with the death of his girlfriend's son
  • The boy, who had been left under Dallas' care, was already unresponsive when brought to the hospital
  • The autopsy report showed that the boy had suffered "blunt force trauma"
  • Dallas was also charged with unlawful possession of a firearm

A Missouri man has been charged with abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death after a 5-year-old boy died under his care.

Yoshuah Dallas, 24, has been blamed for the death of his girlfriend's son, Jamarion Delancy. The incident took place while Aunyae, the child's mother, was going into labor with her third child.

Delancy and his 7-year-old sister, Micaiah, were left in Dallas' care in their apartment in St. Louis County when their mother was hospitalized for childbirth on Nov. 17.

The following day, Dallas brought Delancy to St. Louis Children’s Hospital. The child was in "dire need of medical attention" at the time, according to the GoFundMe page started by the St. Louis County Police Association. However, the boy was already unresponsive by the time they got to the hospital. He did not survive his injuries.

An autopsy report showed that Delancy had suffered "blunt force trauma" to his abdomen resulting in a lacerated liver and a broken rib. The boy also had bruises on his face and inside his mouth. The report suggested that these injuries had caused significant internal bleeding resulting in his death.

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The boy was brought unresponsive to the hospital and did not survive his injuries. pixabay

The investigation found that Dalancy had special needs. He was blind and had limited mobility, requiring the use of braces on his legs. The police also said that "he had no way to defend himself from the attack."

"This case was so egregious and sad," Joe Patterson, executive director of the police association, said as per St. Louis Post Despatch.

The police arrested Dallas with felony charges of child abuse or neglect resulting in death as he was the sole caretaker of the boy at the time of the incident. He was also charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after they recovered a loaded gun from his apartment.

Dallas was held in St. Louis County Justice Center on a $250,000 cash-only bond. Court records showed no attorney representing him.

"We feel for Aunyae at this incredibly difficult time where she has to bring a baby home from the hospital while planning her son’s funeral and also trying to care for Micaiah who was in the apartment when this horrible act occurred – all with extremely limited resources," the police association wrote on the GoFundMe page.

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