8-year-old Illinois boy ‘was like a little skeleton,’ weighed just 30 pounds at time of death: testimony

An 8-year-old Illinois boy who was allegedly starved to death by his parents weighed just 30 pounds and was covered in bruises, according to testimony during his murder trial.

Little Navin Jones was found unconscious at his parents’ home and later died in hospital on March 29, 2022.

The cause of her death was chronic malnutrition and physical abuse and both parents were charged with her murder.

His mother, Stephanie Jones, 37, pleaded guilty last week to first-degree murder in exchange for less prison time, while his father, Brandon Walker, 41, is on trial this week on the same charge.

During the first three days of Walker’s trial, jurors were shown gruesome photographs of her son’s body (with his bones clearly visible through his skin), as well as images of the squalid conditions the boy was forced into. child, WMBD-TV reported.

Navin’s muscles had wasted, his skin was discolored, his body fat had disappeared and his internal organs had shrunk below their normal sizes and weights at the time of his death, Dr. Amanda Youmans of the Peoria County Coroner’s Office, according to the local station.

Navin Jones was found unconscious at his parents’ home and later died in the hospital on March 29, 2022, weighing only 30 pounds. Knapp-Johnson Funeral Home Navin’s muscles had wasted, his skin was discolored, his body fat had disappeared and his internal organs had shrunk below their normal sizes and weights at the time of death. of the. WMBD

His wrists showed signs of being tied and he was covered in bruises that his body could no longer heal, she said.

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“He was so malnourished that he couldn’t even react to an injury,” Youmans said.

His muscles were in such a state of atrophy that he probably could not move for a long time, he added.

Other evidence presented during the trial showed that Navin’s parents limited his access to food and the bathroom.

They reportedly exchanged text messages expressing anger when the boy ate food from the trash or urinated on the wall of his room, where he was kept locked with rope, according to police testimony and footage from the scene. crime shown to the court.

Navin’s mother, Stephanie Jones, 37, pleaded guilty last week to first-degree murder in exchange for less prison time, while his father, Brandon Walker, 41, is on trial this week for the same position. Navin’s cause of death in the Peoria County Jail was chronic malnutrition and physical abuse and his parents were charged with his murder. Peoria police

A note taped to the boy’s door ordered his older brother not to give Navin food or let him leave his room.

“DO NOT give Navin any food or drink! DO NOT let him leave the room! says the note addressed to the boy’s older brother. “He has what he needs until he wakes me up! Be quiet!

Prosecutors painted a picture of parents who treated their two children very differently.

Navin’s older brother, Bfully, who was 12 at the time of his brother’s death, had a nicely furnished room with video games and Nerf guns, while Navin’s basic room contained only one toy and a bed with a Dirty mattress and no sheets or blankets, according to police and photos. A closet in the room was filled with urine and feces.

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Detective Roberto Vasquez shared what he saw and smelled in the home during a search during testimony.

Navin’s basic room contained only a toy and a bed with a dirty mattress and no sheets or blankets, according to police and photographs. WMBD A note taped to the boy’s door ordered his older brother not to give Navin food or let him leave his room. WMBD

He described a “horrible” smell that permeated Navin’s room and was unlike “anything I had ever smelled before.”

He also noted that the rest of the family home was typical for a family of four and that they had a well-stocked refrigerator.

Navin’s grandmother, Laura Walker, had full custody of the children and had raised them since they were babies, but took them to visit their parents frequently. She left them in the care of her parents when she had to go to Florida to care for her sick mother in July 2021, according to WMBD-TV.

When he returned two weeks later, they refused to return the children to him, he told the court.

She recounted seeing Navin for the last time in the hospital just before he died in emotional testimony Tuesday.

During the first three days of Walker’s trial, jurors were shown gruesome photographs of her son’s body (with his bones clearly visible through his skin), as well as images of the squalid conditions the man was forced into. child.

“He didn’t look human. I touched his shoulder and there was nothing but bone sticking out,” she said through tears, according to the local station. “I had bruises all over my face. He had never seen a human being so thin. “It was like a little skeleton.”

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Brandon Walker’s attorneys have tried to argue that the boy’s chronic constipation is due to his inability to gain weight and consume calories. They also said that the child’s mother was to blame for the abuse since her client worked long hours as a truck driver and was not often home.

Walker faces life in prison if convicted.

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Source: vtt.edu.vn

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