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Documents Detail Abuse Allegations Before Girl's Death
Accusations Date To Early In Child's Life, Papers Show
POSTED: 9:01 pm EST December 3, 2007
INDIANAPOLIS -- A fatally beaten 3-year-old Indianapolis girl allegedly endured abuse at several points in her life, dating back to 2004, documents released by a juvenile court show.Authorities said TaJanay Bailey died last week of blunt force trauma to her head, neck and abdomen. Authorities said she was repeatedly beaten for wetting her pants and soiling herself.The girl's mother, Charity Bailey, and her boyfriend, Lawrence Green, both 20, had initial court hearings Friday on murder and neglect charges. Police said in an affidavit that Bailey and Green blamed each other for beating the child with a belt.TaJanay had been in foster care most of her life but was returned to the custody of her mother on Oct. 31, authorities said.In a hearing last week, juvenile court Judge Marilyn Moores ordered the release of 186 pages of documents in TaJanay's juvenile court records. According to those documents, TaJanay was abused in 2004.She was placed into foster care but eventually returned to her mother. The girl was again placed in foster care in May 2006 over allegations that she had bruising on her torso, neck, arms and legs, according to the documents, 6News' Cheryl Jackson reported.As recently as May, the Department of Child Services recommended that TaJanay remain in foster care, but that the child should eventually be returned to her mother, the documents show.In the spring, the documents allege, Charity Bailey "spent an hour on the phone shouting at someone" and "seemed not to be paying attention to her daughter" during supervised visits with the child.Moores set a hearing for Wednesday to consider a request to release earlier documents from TaJanay's juvenile records and records involving her 6-month-old brother.That child, Lawrence Green Jr., has been returned to state custody. Brizzi said Bailey is 12 weeks pregnant with a third child, and he said the state would seek custody of that child, too, when it is born.Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi is seeking sentences of life without parole for both Bailey and Green, who are being held at the Marion County Jail without opportunity for bail. Brizzi said Friday that DCS failed TaJanay and that foster parents and state caseworkers would be interviewed to find out why. Brizzi stopped short of saying DCS staff acted criminally but said foster parents of other children have contacted his office to complain that the state agency, despite extensive reforms, places youngsters in danger.
Previous Stories:
- December 2, 2007: Girl's Slaying Magnifies Apartments' Problems
- November 30, 2007: Prosecutor: State Failed To Protect Fatally Beaten Girl
- November 30, 2007: Trial Set For Couple Accused Of Killing 3-Year-Old Girl
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