KHALIL LEAK - 2 yo (2011)/ Convicted: Father; Richard Leak - New Rochelle (N of NYC) NY

New Rochelle boy, 2, who died had been subject of abuse probe

NEW ROCHELLE — The 2-year-old city boy whose "suspicious" death Sunday is
under investigation was taken from his parents and placed in foster care
for 15 months on allegations that he was physically abused, police said
today.

The toddler, who was removed by Westchester Child Protective Services in
March 2009 after the abuse was alleged a month earlier, was returned to
his parents in June 2010, New Rochelle police Detective Lt. Christopher
Hearle said.City police, CPS and the District Attorney's Office investigated the 2009
allegation, but the parents were never charged with abuse.Authorities have yet to determine the cause of Sunday's death, though they have labeled it suspicious."This was a 2-year-old healthy child," Hearle said. "He was healthy moments before he stopped breathing."Police
were called to the Bracey municipal housing complex, at 345 Main St.,
at 1:15 a.m. Sunday on a report that the child, whose name was not
released, had stopped breathing.  By the time police arrived, a neighbor
was already performing CPR. The boy was taken by ambulance to Sound
Shore Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead about 2 a.m.Hearle
said the child's dire condition came to light after the father called a
friend to report his son was having trouble breathing. The friend then
called a woman who lived in the building. She was the one who was
performing CPR when officers arrived, Hearle said.There have been no arrests, but police have questioned the parents and several neighbors, Hearle said.The Medical Examiner's Office declined to comment, referring all questions to police.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20110110/NEWS02/101100359/-1/newsfront/New-Rochelle-boy--2--who-died-had-been-subject-of-abuse-probe

Posters note: If your child stops breathing call 911, not a friend.

New Rochelle Police Arrest Father In Death Of Son, 2

January 13, 2011 2:42 PM

Richard Leak: Photo/New Rochelle PD

NEW YORK — The father of a 2-year-old boy who died Sunday has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the boy’s death, New Rochelle Police announced Thursday.

Richard Leak, 30, was arrested after Khalil Leak, 2, was pronounced
dead shortly after being taken to Sound Shore Medical Center with a head
injury on Jan. 9, police said.
According to authorities, the boy’s mother, Kadya Ravizee, had taken
Khalil’s infant brother, Kaiden, to the same hospital on Saturday. While
she was at the hospital, Leak reportedly called her from their home at
345 Main St. to say Khalil was also having trouble breathing, police
said.
Ravizee then called a neighbor who performed CPR on Khalil and then
called 911, according to police. Khalil was rushed to the hospital and
pronounced dead at around 2 a.m.
“The evidence and information that we have leads us to believe that
the child’s father forcefully struck the child’s head against a hard
surface fracturing the child’s skull and causing his death,” New
Rochelle Detective Capt. Joseph Schaller said.
The boy was removed from the home in 2009 after county officials said they cited evidence of child abuse — including fractured ribs and a broken leg, Schaller said.
A Family Court judge returned Khalil to his parents 15 months later,
saying the boy’s injuries could have been related to a history of
medical problems, including anemia and a bleeding disorder.
Leak has a prior criminal history for offenses including battery and assault.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/01/13/new-rochelle-police-charge-father-in-death-of-2-year-old-son/

NY dad charged with murder in 2-year-old's death

Associated Press

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Police say a 30-year-old man killed his toddler son by slamming his skull against a hard surface.

Detective Capt. Joseph Schaller said Thursday that Richard Leak of New Rochelle was charged with murder in the Sunday death of 2-year-old Khalil Leak.

He says the Westchester County medical examiner had determined the cause of death to be a fractured skull caused by blunt force.

The district attorney's office says Leak was arraigned and sent to the county jail pending a court appearance next Thursday.

A call to Legal Aid, which represented leak, was not immediately returned.

Police say they found the boy dead after Leak called Khalil's mother and reported he was having trouble breathing.

NEW ROCHELLE — A 2-year-old city boy who was allegedly killed Sunday by his father will be laid to rest tomorrow.

A funeral for Khalil Leak will be held at 11 a.m. at St. Catherine AME
Zion Church, 19 Lincoln Ave. He will be buried afterward at the
Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale.There
will be calling hours at the church between 10 and 11 a.m., just prior
to the funeral. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Barney
McClanahan Funeral Home.The boy's father, Richard "Ricky" Leak, 30, was arraigned Thursday on a charge of second-degree murder.The
Westchester Medical Examiner's office found that Khalil Leak had a
fracture to the back of the head and several broken ribs, which they
believe were the result of being slammed against a hard surface, police
said.On Saturday
night, the boy's mother, K'Daya Ravizee, had taken her other son,
Kaiden, to Sound Shore Medical Center in New Rochelle with respiratory
problems. While she was there, Leak called from home to say Khalil was
also having trouble breathing, police said.The
mother called a baby sitter who lives in the same building, 345 Main
St. She went to their apartment to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation
on the boy and called 911 at 1:15 a.m., police said. Khalil was then
taken to the hospital and pronounced dead at 2 a.m.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20110114/NEWS02/101140365/-1/newsfront/Funeral-Saturday-for-2-year-old-New-Rochelle-boy--father-charged-with-murder

NEW ROCHELLE — A father is accused of fracturing his 2-year-old son's skull and ribs by slamming him against a hard surface on Sunday.

Richard "Ricky" Leak, 30, was arraigned Thursday on a charge of second-degree murder. He was arrested Wednesday night after detectives questioned him."We believe he caused the death of the child," Detective Capt. Joseph Schaller said after the arraignment.

The Westchester Medical Examiner's office found that Khalil Leak had a fracture to the back of the head and several broken ribs, which they believe were the result of being slammed, Schaller said.

• Child-abuse cases rising in state, nation
  

He also said there was evidence of prior abuse, but provided no details. The boy and his parents had been the subject of an abuse investigation that resulted in Khalil's removal from the home in 2009 by Westchester County, which cited evidence of injuries including bleeding to the brain and fractured ribs. He was sent to live with relatives as a judge held hearings to determine whether he should return to his parents or remain in foster care.

Family Court Judge Kathie Davidson returned him to his parents after 15 months, ruling that the injuries could have been related to an extensive history of medical problems. County officials insist that Davidson's ruling was "over their objections" and filed an appeal even before she issued her written decision. But David Bookstaver, a spokesman for the state Office of Court Administration, said the county recommended that the boy be returned.

In her August ruling, Davidson found it significant that the county early in 2010 had allowed unsupervised visits by mother K'Daya Ravizee and supervised visits by the father."Clearly, the Department of Social Services was moving toward returning the child and reuniting the family," the judge wrote.

Details emerged Thursday that Davidson was a friend of Khalil's grandmother before the case reached her court. During the case, the judge was at a Mount Vernon church service attended by Ravizee and her mother and realized the grandmother was an acquaintance from years earlier, Bookstaver said. She told the parties of the encounter and asked whether any had a problem with her remaining on the case. She kept the case and it proceeded when neither side voiced objections, Bookstaver said.

Leak, a slender man at 6 feet tall, was handcuffed and wearing blue jeans, a gray sweater and black sneakers at Thursday's arraignment, which was attended by a half-dozen family members. Represented by a lawyer from the Legal Aid Society, he was not yet allowed to enter a plea and was sent without bail to the county jail, pending a Jan. 20 court appearance.
Leak, a slender man at 6 feet tall, was handcuffed and wearing blue jeans, a gray sweater and black sneakers at Thursday's arraignment, which was attended by a half-dozen family members. Represented by a lawyer from the Legal Aid Society, he was not yet allowed to enter a plea and was sent without bail to the county jail, pending a Jan. 20 court appearance.

The judge had Leak sign an order of protection barring him from contacting his other son, an infant now staying with a family friend under DSS supervision. Schaller said Leak has a criminal record for burglary, drug possession and assault against an adult and was sentenced to a year in jail for the assault. On Saturday night, Ravizee had taken her other son, Kaiden, to Sound Shore Medical Center in New Rochelle with respiratory poblems. While she was there, Leak called from home to say Khalil was also having trouble breathing, police said. The mother called a baby sitter who lives in the same building, 345 Main St. She went to their apartment to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the boy and called 911 at 1:15 a.m., police said. Khalil was then taken to the hospital and pronounced dead at 2 a.m.

The baby sitter, Janet Graves, a nurse's aid for more than two decades, told The Journal News on Thursday that she began caring for the children in recent months and was heartbroken by Khalil's death, crying about it every day since. "I was trying to save somebody's life that I loved. He was like a child of mine," she said of Khalil, whom she described as bashful but always grinning. "I'm truly sickened by this because this was the sweetest, lovingest, kindest little kid."

She said she got a call from Ravizee early Sunday to check on Khalil and, when she got to the fourth-floor apartment, the toddler was sprawled on the couch. Graves, 54, said she had never observed signs of abuse and didn't know what to think about Leak's arrest. "I can't believe anyone would hurt that child. I don't want to believe it," she said. "Are you asking me if he's capable of doing that? I don't know. He seemed to be a nice person. I can't speak on something I don't know."

She did question why Leak called his wife instead of 911.

At 345 Main, a multi-story public housing complex, several residents signed a poster with two pictures of Khalil, a wide-eyed tot grinning and wearing a Buffalo Bills cap."RIP, Kahlil. God's Little Angel," one person wrote.Nearly all of the tenants were aware of the boy's death and the arrest.

Those who spoke with a reporter defended Leak, describing him as a doting dad who they couldn't imagine harming the child. "He was an excellent father," said Leon Lewis, 25. "I never even seen him catch no attitude with his kids. I would see him with his kids more than I see K'Daya."

Lewis said he saw Leak at another young person's wake on Monday evening and "he look like he was still in shock. I told him, 'My prayers are with you.' "Lewis said he would often see Leak walking the boy around the neighborhood, feeding him and playing with him on a swing and monkey bars outside. "Knowing the way he is, I can't believe he would do this," Lewis said. "I think they're slandering his name."

Richard Leak Indicted in Death of 2-year-old Son

The New Rochelle man faces 25 years to life in prison, if convicted
March 3, 2011


The New Rochelle man who stands accused in the death of his son was indicted Thursday.

Richard Leak was arraigned and charged with second-degree murder, a class "A" felony, and first-degree manslaughter, a class "B" felony, related to the Jan. 9 death of Khalil Leak, 2.

A Westchester Grand Jury brought in the indictments. Second-degree murder is depraved indifference to human ife. First-degree manslaughter, according to the county District Attorney's office, is when someone "recklessly ngages in conduct which creates a grave risk of serious physical injury to a person causing the death of a erson."

If convicted, Richard Leak faces a maximum of 25 years to life in state prison.

Police said that around 1 a.m. Jan. 9 Richard Leak phoned his live-in girlfriend, who was not at their Main Street ome at the time, to say Khalil Leak was not breathing. The girlfriend called a neighbor to ask her to check on the child.

Khalil Leak was taken to Sound Shore Medical Center where he was pronounced dead about an hour later.

The County Medical Examiner determined the cause of Khalil Leak's death to be from a fracture to the back of is skull caused by blunt force. The child's ribs were fractures and there were contusions to his brain.

Police said their investigation led them to believe Richard Leak struck the child's head against a hard surface.

New Rochelle police began an investigation and arrested Richard Leak Jan. 12.

He is being held without bail at the Westchester County Jail. His next court appearance will be March 24.

Assistant District Attorney Heide Mason, bureau chief of the Child/Elder Abuse Bureau, and Assistant District ttorney Christine Hatfield, acting deputy chief of the Child/Elder Abuse Bureau, will prosecute the case.

I hope they beat the crap out of this POS in prison !!!

20 Years For New Rochelle Man Convicted Of Killing 2-Year-Old Son
Richard Leak Had Claimed Boy's Injuries Were 'An Accident'

August 13, 2013 10:25 PM

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — A Westchester County man was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday for killing his own 2-year-old son.

Richard Leak, 32, of New Rochelle, received his punishment after being convicted in March of first-degree manslaughter, Westchester County prosecutors announced.

On Jan. 9, 2011, prosecutors said Leak called his live-in girlfriend who was not at home and told her that their son, Khalil Leak, was not breathing.

The girlfriend then called a downstairs neighbor and asked her to check on Khalil. The neighbor went upstairs, found the boy unresponsive in apartment and called 911.

The boy was taken to the hospital where he later died, prosecutors said.

A few days later, Leak was arrested.

“Extensive detective and forensic pathology work by both the New Rochelle Police Department and the Westchester County Medical Examiner were instrumental in the conviction and ultimate sentence that this defendant received. The severity of the injuries, along with multiple and conflicting stories as to how the child sustained those fatal injuries, belied the defendant’s protestations that his own son’s death was just ‘an accident,’” Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore said in a news release.

He was sentenced as a predicate violent felony offender, prosecutors said.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/08/13/20-years-for-new-rochelle-man-convicted-of-killing-2-year-old-son/