Arizona boy, 6, kept locked inside cupboard for a month by parents and grandma died of starvation: Autopsy
FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA: A six-year-old boy was reportedly locked inside a cupboard for a whole month as a punishment for stealing food. He weighed just 18lbs and starved to death, an autopsy reveals.
The child's parents, 26-year-old Elizabeth Archibeque and 23-year-old Anthony Martinez, and grandma, Ann Martinez, 50, were all charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping, and child abuse, the Daily Mail reports.
All three family members have pleaded not guilty in the death of Deshaun Martinez, 6. An autopsy report released this week showed that Deshaun had died due to starvation with the manner of death being ruled as a homicide. The child reportedly had the same weight as a baby and looked 'skeletal' and almost zero body fat and brittle hair. The authorities revealed that they had responded to the apartment where Deshaun lived with his family on March 2 and found the child lying unresponsive on the living room floor.
The police released a statement and said, "The physical appearance of the six-year-old child did not compliment his age, appearing malnourished." Deshaun was pronounced dead at the scene and could not be revived by medical personnel.
His brother, 7, also in malnourished state
Initially, his parents blamed his malnourished state to a medical condition and to ingesting caffeine pills. They later confessed to the authorities that they had kept Deshaun and his seven-year-old brother inside a closet for around 16 hours a day and would feed both of them very little. The two children were locked up between 8 pm and 12 pm to the next day when they were given some oatmeal. Around four hours later, the boys were allowed to eat a cheese sandwich. It seemed their younger sisters who are aged four and two were not at all malnourished.
The boys had been punished as they had stolen some food while the parents were sleeping. The autopsy report also showed that Deshaun had some trouble gaining weight as was mentioned in his medical history.
At around two years old he had been admitted to hospital due to sepsis and a urinary tract infection, which led to him vomiting every time he was fed. After being admitted for 10 days, the parents were counseled on how to help keep Deshaun at a healthy weight when he was ready to be discharged. When he was four, his weight was 34lbs but a year later dropped to 27lbs and then further to 18 lbs when he died. Medical examiner Lawrence Czarnecki said he was in a 'non-life-sustaining state of starvation.'
Czarnecki also said the child had a skeletal appearance with his skin stretched across his bones. He had sunken eyes and dark circles and his hair was very brittle. The child also had abrasions and bruises on his body which were not life-threatening, the autopsy report added.
Anthony Martinez, the boy's father said the family was on a tight budget and had been awaiting food stamps to buy some more fatty food for Deshaun. The prosecutors in the case have until late July to make a decision on whether they want to pursue capital punishment.