TAVON TURPIN - 11 yo /Autistic (2010) - Coney Island NY

A Coney Island grandmother is facing criminal charges after an 11-year-old autistic boy who was left home alone perished in a fire yesterday.
Investigators believe Melinda McLain was at the store when Tavon Turpin
began playing with matches or a lighter in a closet of their 15th-floor
apartment and set the fire that took his life.

McLain was treated for smoke inhalation and charged with reckless
endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, according to the Post. Firefighters responded to the blaze just after noon and found the child unconscious inside the residence, the Times
reports. Witness Anthony Artist said firefighters tried to save the
boy. "They were pumping his chest," Artist said. "They had an oxygen
tank on him and they were trying to revive him. He was covered from
head to toe in soot ... It hurts. I used to put him on the school bus.
Everybody loved him. He was like everybody's kid."

According to Donna Clarke, who would see the 11-year-old when she
visited relatives, the boy appeared happy and well cared for. However
she couldn't fathom leaving him home alone. "You never leave your child
alone at 11 years old, especially if he's autistic," she said. "He
can't help himself.

Autistic Boy, Left Alone, Dies in Fire; Grandmother Charged


Woman left child while she went to deli down the street



An autistic child perished in a fire that he apparently set while he was left alone in a Brooklyn apartment, authorities say.

Melinda McLain, 59, left her grandson Tavon Turpin home alone while she walked down the street to a deli near their home in Coney Island, according to published reports.

In his grandmother's absence, the 11-year-old boy ignited a fire in a hallway closet. He was barely able to speak due to his disability, so couldn't cry for help, reports the Daily News.

Firefighters rushed to the scene and pulled a motionless Tavon from the 15th-floor apartment, but could not revive him. When McClain returned him, she saw the boy's body and broke down. Tavon was pronounced dead at Coney Island Hospital.

Cops arrested McLain at the same hospital, where she was being treated for smoke inhalation and asthma, reports the News. They charged the grandmother with reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child.

Those who knew McClain describe the boy's death as a tragic accident. Neighbors said they often saw the pair walking to the bus stop before school. They described the grandmother as loving and devoted, and Tavon as a happy child.

"She loved that boy," Allen Pearsall told the News. "That little boy was this lady's life. None of us are perfect."

The name of McClain's attorney was not immediately on record Wednesday.
http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Autistic-Boy-Left-Alone-Dies-in-Fire-Grandmother-Charged-84588477.html

Case #DefendantSummons #Appearance DateCourtJudgePart

2010KN014273	Mclain, Melinda		06/23/2011	Kings Criminal Court		JURY1

http://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcrim_attorney/DefendantSearch

Next Appearance
Date:November 28, 2011
Court:Kings Criminal Court
Part:AP2

http://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcrim_attorney/Detail?which=case&docketNumber=15ua/RS4/HGtMA8B9ZrVKA==&courtType=L&countyId=Mx3NDQ8QLq7VMaHuMnNJWw==&docketId=rWQaUoqCdP10mefSrklWlQ==&docketDseq=o6PDyKIx4BvSfbvyCgDnHw==&defendantName=Mclain,+Melinda&county=KINGS&court=Kings+Criminal+Court&recordType=C&recordNum=KL4YLYkODCNu0U2o5A/q/A==

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