JEREMIAH McRATH - 3 yo (2010) - Sacramento CA

Sacramento CA ---- A 3-year-old boy who police suspected was beaten by
his father and stepmother died early Thursday morning at the UC Davis
Medical Center.
Hospital media spokeswoman Phyllis Brown said Jeremiah McRath died at
1:20 a.m.
The child suffered injuries to his head and bruises on his body,
prompting the hospital staff to call police on Tuesday night.


His father, Adrian McRath, 19, and stepmother, Dayshawna Lawrence,
22, were arrested Wednesday on charges of endangering the child's life
and inflicting corporal injury to a child.
Both suspects remain in custody at the Sacramento County Jail.
The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office has yet to decide
on additional charges.
Sacramento police Sgt. Norm Leong said the boy's stepmother found the
child unconscious Tuesday in the bathroom of their home on the 2700
block of 32nd Street. She took him to a neighbor's house where 911 was
called.
Leong said investigators determined the child had been disciplined by
his father and stepmother earlier in the day.

A 3-year-old boy who authorities suspect was the
victim of child abuse has died at a Sacramento hospital, an official
confirmed Thursday.Jeremiah Mcrath died at 1:20 a.m. at UC Davis
Medical Center, a hospital representative said.The boy's father
and stepmother were arrested Wednesday on suspicion of abuse, but in
jailhouse interviews they denied any wrongdoing.Adrian Ramon
Mcrath, 19, and Dayshawna N. Lawrence, 22, are set to appear in court on
Friday.Police Sgt. Norm Leong said there is no timeline for
upgrading charges against the suspects. He said police will be working
with the district attorney on the issue.The 70-pound boy received
head injuries and bruising to his body. A family member said the boy
had been spanked after wetting his pants.Adrian Mcrath is
currently facing felony charges of endangering the life or health of a
child, corporal punishment and violation of probation. His bail was set
at $500,000.Lawrence is facing felony charges of endangering the
life or health of a child, corporal punishment and domestic violence.
She was also sought on warrants. Her bail was set at $511,782.According
to court records, Adrian Mcrath pleaded no contest last year to a
charge of carrying a concealed firearm. He was given probation.Paramedics
were initially called to a home in the 2700 block of 32nd Street on
Tuesday night after the boy was found unconscious.Based on a
preliminary investigation, detectives determined that that the child was
physically disciplined Tuesday by both the father and stepmother. Later
in the day, the father left the house. In the evening, the child went
to the bathroom and the stepmother heard a noise. The stepmother went to
go check on the child and found him unconscious.The child was
carried over to a neighbor's apartment, where 911 was called. The boy
was taken to the hospital. When doctors saw the injuries, they called
police.

The father and stepmother of a toddler who died after
suffering injuries police believe were inflicted at the hands of his
parents have been charged with his death.

Adrian McRath, 19, and Dayshawna Lawrence, 22, were
charged with the murder of 3-year-old Jeremiah McRath in Sacramento
County Superior Court on Friday. The pair also face charges of assault
on a child under age 8 resulting in death, child endangerment, and
inflicting corporal injury on a child.

The 3-year-old died early Thursday morning at UC Davis
Medical Center. Sacramento police Sgt. Norm Leong said Lawrence found
the child unconscious Tuesday in the bathroom of the couple's home on
the 2700 block of 32nd Street. She took him to a neighbor's house where
911 was called.

Leong said investigators determined the boy had been
disciplined by his father and stepmother earlier in the day.

The victim's distraught grandmother, Malvola Dupree, was at
Firday's court hearing. She said she was aware of one other time, last
September, when the boy appeared to have been hurt after staying with
the suspects.

"When he came home, I was going to give him a bath and when
I went to give him a bath, he had a massive bruise from his back all
the way back down to his knees," Dupree said. "And I told her (her
daughter, Jeremiah's mother), don't let him ever go back over there.
'OK, mom, I won't.' Then he said, 'I want to see my dad!'"

Lewis and McRath remain in custody at Sacramento County
Jail.

A stepmother accused of playing a role in the death of a 3-year-old boy
said she attempted to revive the unconscious child in a shower before
taking him to her grandmother's home, according to a newly released
Sacramento County Child Protective Services document.The report
states the grandmother called 911 seeking help for Jeremiah McRath.The
stepmother, Dayshawna Nichole Lawrence, and the boy's father, Adrian
Ramon McRath, have been arrested on suspicion of murder and child abuse
in connection with the boy's death last month.When paramedics
responded to the grandmother's home, the boy did not have a heartbeat,
the report said.The report said the boy had multiple bruises all
over his body and suffered from brain bleed, the latter of which
appeared to be consistent with "non-accidental injury," according to the
report.The boy's stepmother and her 5-month-old child were the
only other people in the home when the incident took place, according to
the report. Jeremiah McRath had been staying with his father and
stepmother in the days prior.According to the report, Lawrence
claimed the child had been potty-trained but that'd he'd had an accident
that day. She said that the usual punishment was to have him stand in a
corner for half an hour. He had been sent to the corner for 30 minutes,
the report stated, but he complained of being tired.When McRath
finished standing for 30 minutes, Lawrence sent him to a bathroom to
urinate. He went inside, but didn't come out. The stepmother said she
went to check on him and found him unconscious on the floor.According
to the report, the stepmother said knowing that the boy didn't like
water on his face, and in an effort to wake him up, she went into the
shower with him and the 5-month-old.At that point, the report
said, Lawrence took the boy to the grandmother's home and texted Adrian
McRath.The report said someone asked Lawrence if the child was a
"rough and tumble kid," and she said she had loads of laundry in a
hallway and that the boy had tripped over them and fell.However,
according to the report, her explanation seemed inconsistent with the
injuries seen on Jeremiah McRath, and that an emergency room doctor
determined that the child's bruises were "old injuries."Sacramento's
chief probation officer, Don Meyer, says budget cuts eliminated the
probation officers who would have been monitoring the boy's father and
his home and perhaps would have spotted signs of trouble.County
officials said 19-year old Adrian McRath was a high-risk offender on
unsupervised probation."Clearly this is a person where we would
have wanted to be in the home and see him and we would have seen family
members, we would have done searches. We would have drug tested -- all
the things probation officers do, plus get them into an effective
treatment program," Meyer said.Meyer said there are now 5,000
high-risk adult offenders in Sacramento who are no longer being
supervised."Certainly being there and talking to people and
looking around, we may have developed some information because we make
frequent CPS, Child Protective Services reports, based upon our visits.
And there have been a number of children removed from the homes because …
that's our business," Meyer said.

Greetings to whom it may concern. Your company ran a story about my nephew Jeremiah Josiah McRath. The 3-year-old old who was beat by his father Adrian McRath and suppose to be step-mom Dayshawna Nicole Lawrence. Will Adrian was given six years for physically punishing Jeremiah. But Dayshawna will be going to a jury trail for the murder of Jeremiah. Just thought an update would be nice. Well this is all I can say. Thank you for your time, Ms. K. Loya-Hardin (Jeremiah's maternal auntie)

Auntie Kyoko wrote:Greetings to whom it may concern. Your company ran a story about my nephew Jeremiah Josiah McRath. The 3-year-old old who was beat by his father Adrian McRath and suppose to be step-mom Dayshawna Nicole Lawrence. Will Adrian was given six years for physically punishing Jeremiah. But Dayshawna will be going to a jury trail for the murder of Jeremiah. Just thought an update would be nice. Well this is all I can say. Thank you for your time, Ms. K. Loya-Hardin (Jeremiah's maternal auntie)

Thank you for the update, Ms. Loya-Hardin. I am terribly sorry for your loss.

I don't understand why they aren't BOTH standing trial for murder?

Thank you Auntie Kyoko. I can't find any news in the mainstream media so much appreciated. I don't understand why the father only got 6 years either, particularly as he was on probation and they said he was a high risk offender. I hate to think what else he will do when he gets out. The most frustrating thing is how the heck did he have a child in his care in the first place and even more frustrating that he was meant to have been supervised but hadn't been due to budget cuts. At least the evil stepmother will be in jail for a long time - I hope.

Now moving to ADJUDICATED
Thanks Auntie K for the update!

Thanks mermaid. So it looks like he is still going to trial next March for endangering the life of a child. Perhaps the info from the Aunt was wrong.
Unless he has just done a plea for 6 years to that charge and they haven't updated the sheets yet???

Sometimes things make you say WTF?

SIX YEARS with priors? This does NOT make sense. Maybe it's a misprint and it should say 60 years. If not, this is a sad, sad commentary on the value placed on childrens' lives these days. I am outraged.

kiwimom wrote:Thanks mermaid. So it looks like he is still going to trial next March for endangering the life of a child. Perhaps the info from the Aunt was wrong.
Unless he has just done a plea for 6 years to that charge and they haven't updated the sheets yet???

The info I gave wasn't wrong. He did enter a guilty plea, but he will not be sentenced until March so that that females lawyer can not use him as a character witness. She did got to court on the 3rd just to make sure the 9th was still good for the trial date. Therefore, the trail starts tomorrow. My blood sister, who is Jeremiah's mother, will be there in full force with all of our family for support. May God give the justice my nephew and sister deserve, amin. -Auntie Kyoko

Admin wrote:Sometimes things make you say WTF?

SIX YEARS with priors? This does NOT make sense. Maybe it's a misprint and it should say 60 years. If not, this is a sad, sad commentary on the value placed on childrens' lives these days. I am outraged.

Please don't be outraged. The emotions spent on Adrian isn't worth it, because you can spend it in a more positive way with your family. Adrian got 6 years, which is the max for his charges, because he was guilty of physical punishment - not murder. I went to the pre-lim and heard all the info they have against her. There is enough for a trail. So now we just wait to see what the jury says. I will have an update and more info for you all by the end of this week. It is really and open & shut case, so it shouldn't take long. -Auntie Kyoko

Thank you again Auntie Kyoko for clearing up our questions. Are you willing to shed any light on how Adrian got custody in the first place and how long Jeremiah had been with him? My own son is the same age as Adrian and I can't imagine him having custody and the responsibility for a 3 year old!

kiwimom wrote:Thank you again Auntie Kyoko for clearing up our questions. Are you willing to shed any light on how Adrian got custody in the first place and how long Jeremiah had been with him? My own son is the same age as Adrian and I can't imagine him having custody and the responsibility for a 3 year old!

Adrian did not have custody of Jeremiah. Jeremiah was visiting his father and had only been there for a couple of days. Jeremiah had went a long time not visiting Adrian and had only been seeing him over a period of less then 4 weeks. Yes Adrian does have a past that isn't ideal, but thats what happens to children who falls through the cracks and was a ward of the court. In July 2005 Adrian's father murdered his younger brother (Adrian's uncle), then 3 weeks later Adrian's mother died from a heart attack. Adrian just turned 15 when this all happen and had only been around his mother for about a month, after not seeing her for about 6+ years. He was about 2 or 3 the last time he saw his father. I could be wrong about his age, but not by much. A year later is when Jeremiah was born and Adrian felt he had a reason to live. It was during his relationship with that female where it seemed that his attraction to negative actions deeply increased. Please do not think that I'm trying to make any excuses for him physically punishing my nephew JereJo, or totally blaming that female for his behavior. He is accountable for all his actions. But from what I did witness Adrian did and does love Jeremiah. Some may disagree, because they do not agree with physical punishment. Others may understand and accept this, to each his/her own. I'm just stating what I know to be true.

My sister Kandi has to live with the fact that she sent her only child to his death bed by trying to do what she felt was right for her son. See Kandi was raised with both parents, so she feels a child needs both parents. She trusted that Adrian would do right by their son. We never really know the limits of anybody else, because people change. Even when they have displayed the same behavior for years. My family is hurting deeply behind this, just like other parents, families and friends on here. Yet we don't hate that girl. Trust me, I look at her in them court rooms and try to have hate for her, but I can't and neither does my sister. WE MAD AS HELL, but don't hate her. Thats just the way God has allowed us to deal with it. Hating her is like locking her up in a box for the rest of our lives, but we don't have that type of time. Thats why we depend on God for JUSTICE. May He bring my nephew, my sister and everyone else whom was hurt by this event JUSTICE, amin. -Auntie Kyoko

Thanks so much for your reply Auntie Kyoko. I completely agree there is no point in hatred and I understand you are not making excuses. We need to try to UNDERSTAND why something like this happens so we can try to prevent it, and I don't believe simply calling a young man evil gets us anywhere. Adrian had more heartache than any child should have to deal with, and now another precious child is gone and Adrian's life is ruined too.
It's just so terribly sad. Your daughter can't blame herself. She was only doing what she felt was in the best interests of her son and she is to be commended for realizing how important it is for a child to have both parents in their lives if possible. I'm just so terribly sorry for your loss.

updates:

Today my family had the sweet taste of justice. That female entered a "no contest" plea and will be given 25 years to LIFE for assault resulting in death of child under 8 years of age . Her sentencing will be held on March 18th. They will see if Adrian would like to be sentenced at the same time. If not, he will be sentenced on March 8th.

I have never had the feeling to sing and cry at the same time. I was hoping she got the 25 years, but then felt sad for her when the judge said LIFE. (They say the less amount of time she has to serve before asking for parole is 21 years). I'm not sure why, because I still very upset with her. I didn't want her to have a hand in raising her son, I felt maybe one day she would be a grandmother and would treat her grandchildren right. I guess I can truly say I don't hate her, just her action.

Any how, I will update you all next month.

-Auntie Kyoko

Auntie Kyoko,

I am so happy for you and your family to hear this news. I know that nothing can ever take away the deep pain your sister feels but I hope she takes comfort in knowing her angel is watching over her.

Auntie Kyoko wrote:updates:

Today my family had the sweet taste of justice. That female entered a "no contest" plea and will be given 25 years to LIFE for assault resulting in death of child under 8 years of age . Her sentencing will be held on March 18th. They will see if Adrian would like to be sentenced at the same time. If not, he will be sentenced on March 8th.

I have never had the feeling to sing and cry at the same time. I was hoping she got the 25 years, but then felt sad for her when the judge said LIFE. (They say the less amount of time she has to serve before asking for parole is 21 years). I'm not sure why, because I still very upset with her. I didn't want her to have a hand in raising her son, I felt maybe one day she would be a grandmother and would treat her grandchildren right. I guess I can truly say I don't hate her, just her action.

Any how, I will update you all next month.

-Auntie Kyoko

That's great news! Justice done. We can be sure any future Grandchildren will be safe from her too.

A little something I found about the case


February 15, 2011

Sacramento woman pleads no contest in death of stepson, 3
By Andy Furillo
afurillo@sacbee.com

A woman charged in the death of her 3-year-old stepson pleaded no contest today to felony child endangerment resulting in death and is facing a likely 25-to-life sentence.

Dayshawna Lawrence, 23, entered her plea in the March 25 death of Jeremiah McRath on the first day of jury selection in her trial. She had been charged with murder as well as the child endangerment charge.

"The death of a vulnerable child like Jeremiah at the hands of someone who is supposed to be caring for them is extremely tragic," Deputy District Attorney Sheri Greco said. "So in this case, we're going to seek the maximum sentence we could have obtained had the case gone to trial, that being 25 to life."

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Patrick Marlette scheduled Lawrence's sentencing for March. 18.

Her husband and the dead boy's father, Adrian Ramon McRath, 20, pleaded no contest Dec. 14 to a lesser version of felony child endangerment. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 8.

Greco said McRath is facing a probable term of six years and eight months in prison.

Call The Bee's Andy Furillo, (916) 321-1141.

Categories: Homicide, Sacramento City News

Posted by Bill Enfield
5:02 PM | 6 Comments | Share


Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/crime/archives/2011/02/sacramento-woma-20.html#ixzz1EfAg8Clf

Thank you for the update Auntie Kyoko. I guess now we wait for March. This is such a sad story.

Yesterday was the last day of court. They both have been sentenced and now it's time to start the healing, God willing. THANK YOU FROM THE BOTH OF MY HEART FOR ALL OF YOUR TIME, SUPPORT AND PRAYERS. Below I have enclosed a few links to my facebook pictures of my nephew. -Auntie Kyoko

Birth pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18421&id=1747150111&l=5584ce36c7
2 month old pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18424&id=1747150111&l=2868d23281
2007 pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18425&id=1747150111&l=6211634586
2008 pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18426&id=1747150111&l=9641e84719
2009 pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18427&id=1747150111&l=80ea8d896c
RIP pics... https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=14945&id=1747150111&l=1c29b1cb16

What a happy child...such a shame...