MAKYNLI HOPKINS - 2 Months (2010) - Hermleigh TX

A year after the death of a 2-month-old Hermleigh girl, there have been no charges filed, but the case has not left the mind of the district attorney.

Dana Cooley said she is still pursuing the case of Makynli Hopkins and believes it will eventually be brought to a grand jury. However, she did not give a timeframe on when the case will be presented.

Hopkins was brought to Snyder after a 9-1-1 call at 7:28 p.m. March 4 from a woman stating that her daughter was unresponsive.

The girl’s parents, Zack Hopkins and Cassie Harbin, drove the girl to the Purple Sage Motel parking lot where they were met by an ambulance. The girl was first taken to Cogdell Memorial Hospital where deputies were called due to head injuries.

The baby was later airlifted to Covenant Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Lubbock where she died on March 7, 2010.

An autopsy the next day showed the child died of blunt force trauma to the head and the case was ruled a homicide.

The Scurry County sheriff’s office and Texas Ranger Phil Vandygriff investigated and the findings were turned over to Dana Cooley.

Cooley said it took several months to get an official autopsy from Lubbock and then other tests were conducted, without giving specifics.

“I’m working on my part of the case. I can’t say more than that,” Cooley added.

Asked why the case has gone this long without any resolution the DA said, “Because I try to do it right.” According to investigators, the parents were alone with their daughter in their Hermleigh home.

Harbin’s attorney, Chuck Lanehart of Lubbock, said his client maintains her innocence and would not comment further. Hopkins’ attorney, Woody H. Leverett in Midland, could not be reached for comment.

http://bigcountryhomepage.com/fulltext?nxd_id=349636

Nearly two years after the
murder of a Hermleigh baby, no
one has been arrested or charged
in connection with the death,
and officials have no timeline for
moving the case forward.


"The murder investigation of
Makynli Hopkins is still active
and will remain so indefinitely,
since there is not a statute of
limitation for murder," Scurry
County Sheriff Darren Jackson
said.


On March 4, 2010, her parents,
Zach Hopkins and Cassie
Harbin, called 911 and brought
the 14-week-old baby to Snyder
from the family home in Hermleigh,
and met Scurry County
EMS at a local motel.


The baby was airlifted to Lubbock
that night with severe head
injuries and was placed on life
support.
Three days later, she was
pronounced dead at Covenant
Women's and Children's Hospital.


The death was ruled a homicide
by the Lubbock County
Coroner's Office.
The corner listed the cause of
death as severe blunt force trauma
to the head.
Dana Cooley, the 132nd Judicial
District's district attorney,
would not say when the case will
be brought to the grand jury.


"It will be presented to the
grand jury," she said.
Cooley
would not comment further, noting
that it is still an open case.
She also said there is no timeline
for the presentation of the case to
a grand jury.


Neither of the parents, who
were alone at home with the
baby prior to the 911 call, have
been charged with any crime related
to the homicide, and investigators do not believe
anyone else was with the child
on the night she suffered the fatal
injuries.


"We have no evidence that
makes us believe that anyone
else was in the home at the time
of the child's death, other than
her parents," Jackson said.


The Hopkins death came
nearly three years to the day of
the conviction in the death of another
Hermleigh child, Natalie
Vasquez, who died in May 2005.
Her parents, Angel Vasquez and
Tracy Luna, were found guilty
of serious injury to a child and
each was sentenced to 99 years
in prison.

http://bigcountryhomepage.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=460962