EMONIE BEASLEY-BROWN - 3 weeks/ Accused: Grandmother; Pamela Davis and Mother; juvenile - Englewood (Chicago) IL

Authorities: Woman, teen mom charged following infant's suffocation death

By Rosemary R. Sobol Tribune reporter
6:52 p.m. CDT, August 21, 2012

A judge set bail at $250,000 today for a woman accused of holding her hands over her 3-week old granddaughter's mouth to stop her crying last week in Englewood. The baby’s death one day later was declared a homicide by suffocation and the infant’s mother, 14, was also charged, authorities said.

Pamela Davis, 39, of the 5900 block of South Loomis Boulevard, was booked into Cook County Jail today after a judge set her bail at $250,000, according to the Cook County sheriff’s office.

Davis, the victim’s grandmother, was charged with endangering the life and health of a child, according to Cook County state’s attorney’s office spokesman Andy Conklin. Conklin said the infant’s 14-year-old mother was also charged with endangering the life and health of a child, but her case was taken over by juvenile authorities.

Davis, who is the baby’s paternal grandmother, is expected to appear in court again on Sept. 10.

An autopsy Saturday found Emonie Beasley-Brown, of the 3900 block of South Wells Street, died of suffocation and her death was ruled a homicide, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

About midday on Wednesday, Aug. 15, Emonie was believed to be inside Davis’ house in the 5900 block of South Loomis Boulevard with her 14-year-old mother, who had been reported missing, police said.

When police arrived at that house, the occupants allegedly refused to allow the officers inside.

As police knocked on the door, Davis suggested the mother to take the baby and hide in a crawl space and “instructed her to keep the baby quiet” because “she did not want to go to jail,’’ according to a police report.

But the baby began crying and Davis climbed into the crawl space, accidentally hitting the baby about the head with her knee, the report said.

Davis then allegedly held a hand over Emonie's face for 10 minutes and when she removed her hand, the baby was crying even louder so she allegedly "placed both hands over her face and applied pressure for about 20 minutes,'' according to the report.

Davis handed Emonie to her mother, who noticed Emonie’s nose bleeding so she carried the infant south through an alley to a home in the 6000 block of South Bishop Street and handed the child to someone else. A call to 911 was made from that home, police said.

Officials said the 3-week-old girl wasn't breathing and had no pulse when paramedics arrived. Family members at the scene said she had fallen.

Emonie was taken to University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital in critical condition. The child's mother was seen being taken from the scene in an unmarked squad car.

At 10:35 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 16, Emonie was pronounced dead after suffering from "prolonged cardiac arrest" and lack of oxygen to the brain, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

Davis was one of three people were initially investigated for obstructing the police.

State child welfare authorities said Saturday they were investigating allegations of abuse against the child's mother and paternal grandmother.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-authorities-woman-teen-mom-charged-following-infants-suffocation-death-20120821,0,2267174.story

Sad. Another little angel gone.

Why isn't the father arrested for having sex with a minor???
14 is not consent age here in Illiniois.

William

This is a sad case and that's a good question, William. The father must be related to this grandmother but he's not mentioned. What an idiot to hold your hand over an infant's mouth for 20 minutes. There's no way the baby could survive. I hope she goes tojail for a long time.

Here is a breakdown of events that led up to the baby’s death, as reported by the Sun-Times:

Emonie’s mother had come to Davis’ home with the baby Aug. 13 after she got into a fight with her mother and ran away, assistant state’s attorney Wendy Caceres said. The next day the newborn’s maternal grandmother came looking for the pair at Davis’ house. She kept knocking on the door but no one would answer, so she came back with police, prosecutors said.

That’s when prosecutors said Davis, 39, told her son and Emonie’s mother to take the baby and hide in the crawlspace. Davis also told them to barricade the door so police couldn’t get in, Caceres said.

While they were in the crawlspace, Davis allegedly showed Emonie’s mother how to cover the baby’s mouth to keep her quiet and watched as the teenage girl pressed her hand across the baby’s mouth.

Davis left the crawlspace for awhile but when she came back in, she kneed Emonie in the head, Caceres said. When all four eventually came out, Emonie was unresponsive and had blood all over her face, Caceres said.

Emonie died three days later at the University of Chicago Medical
Center. It appears, based on news reports, that neither the mother of the baby nor the grandmother intended to kill the baby.

Davis allegedly admitted to cops that she muffled the baby’s mouth to keep them from finding her hiding spot during their Aug. 13 search. She is being held on $250,000 bond. The baby’s mother is also being charged as a juvenile in connection to her daughter’s death.

Davis, according to Caceres, has a misdemeanor conviction for endangering the life of a child and was ordered to undergo 18 months of court supervision. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services says it has investigated “credible allegations” that the baby’s mother had been abused as a minor.

http://newsone.com/2032078/grandmother-arrested-for-suffocating-baby-during-police-search-pamela-davis-chicago/