GAGE KOELLIKER - 2 yo - St Joseph - MO

St. Joe Police Investigating Toddler Found Dead

POSTED: 11:15 pm CST January 17, 2011ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- A
St. Joseph man is being questioned in the death of a St. Joseph toddler
as some in the community come to grips with the child's death.Last
Friday, St. Joseph police responded to a S 22nd Street home to a call
of an unresponsive child. When they arrived, they said 1-year old Gage
Koelliker had actually died. What they don't know was how it happened.
VIDEO: St. Joe Police Investigate Toddler Death
Saturday afternoon, 24-year old Antonio West was arrested at the
home, and later charged with a felony count of delivery of a controlled
substance. He's also being questioned in the boy's death.Police
said the boy and his mother, Heather Koelliker, stayed in a home with
West. He hasn't been charged with the death, but remains in jail on the
drug charge. Meanwhile, folks in St. Joe, like Ron May, are coming to
grips with the boy's passing."I have a 12-year old child, and I
tell you what, I mean, sometimes it's OK to be overprotective until that
certain point, you know? A lot of parents are younger parents, so it's
kind of hard for a younger parent. It's like kids raising kids. So, it's
disheartening, not only for the parents and the families, but the kid,
that is the victim," May said."It's doubly sad, not only for the community, but for the neighborhood in general," said neighbor Gretchen Herndon.Herndon
said she has been in early childhood care her entire adult life. This
death, she said, hit her hard and now said it's time to turn attention
to the family for more than an investigation."Well, I would think
they would need some mental health counseling, and some gathering of
family, and if they have a faith that they're practicing," she added.Heather
Zoelliker's father said he is confident his daughter had nothing to do
with Gage's death. Gage would have celebrated his second birthday on
Jan. 21.

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