CHICAGO — Teddy bears and flowers adorned a Chicago church Tuesday as pastors prayed for strength at the funeral of a 6-month-old baby girl killed when a gunman fired at a minivan as she sat on her father’s lap. Hundreds attended the service at a church in the Woodlawn neighborhood where the shooting of Jonylah Watkins occurred. “All of us need to apologize to her for not doing our best to make the world a better place,” Pastor Marshall Hatch said. “She deserved better.” The girl’s father, Jonathan Watkins, who was seriously wounded in the March 11 shooting, bowed his head over her small casket for about 10 minutes. The 29-year-old, who had nicknamed his daughter Smooch, wore a white hooded sweatshirt. Jonylah’s death was the latest to draw national attention to Chicago’s struggle with gang violence and murder. The city registered more than 500 homicides last year for the first time since 2008. Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy recently told reporters that homicides are down this year ...
Benjamin Edetanlen was sentenced Wednesday to 18 years in prison for killing his 5-month-old son in 2004 because of a paraphrased version of Proverbs 13:24: “He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.” According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution[1], Edetanlen physically abused the infant, as well as a 2-year-old daughter and a 1-year-old son. “The defendant stated that he disciplined the children, according to the book of Proverbs in the Bible,” said Assistant District Attorney Dalia Racine in court. The baby died from blunt force trauma. He also suffered from a broken leg and brain injuries. Though he faced murder charges, Edetanlen pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and child cruelty. Prosecutors asked the court for an 18 year sentence to be served in full, and the judge agreed. He has been ordered to stay away from children after he is released. His wife also faces charges because she allegedly did nothing to stop the abuse. See ...
A Florida woman has been jailed for one year and ordered to serve three years probation after posing her newborn son in a series of horrifying photos, The Smoking Gun reports[1]. SEE ALSO: A Year After Troy Davis: What’s Changed?[2] Brittany Lester (pictured) was sentenced on Tuesday after being convicted of child abuse charges. The photos, which were taken last August, show her then five-week-old being held inside of a toilet, sitting in a dresser drawer and in other dangerous poses. Want to Keep Up With NewsOne.com? LIKE Us On Facebook! SEE ALSO: Holding On To Our Culinary Heritage[3] The St. Petersburg Police Department learned of the photos from the infant’s father who said Lester texted him the images after he left the motel where they, along with the infant and their 3-year-old, were staying. SEE ALSO: Educators Tackle Black Male Achievement[4] The 22-year-old man reportedly told cops that he had broken up with Lester, but they were trying to be civil for the sake of their children. ...
HOUSTON — A Texas boy who was found in March after having been kidnapped eight years ago as an infant has begun getting to know his parents through weekly joint therapy sessions with them, attorneys and child welfare officials said Wednesday. MUST READ: Woman Finds Ex-Boyfriend Living In Her Attic Over 12 Years After They Broke Up[1] The attorneys said they hope this is another step that will eventually lead the boy to be permanently reunited with his parents. Authorities allege Miguel was taken as an infant, and his baby sitter and her mother remain jailed on kidnapping charges. State District Judge Mike Schneider ordered after a court hearing Wednesday that 8-year-old Miguel Morin remain in foster care until the next court hearing on Jan. 9. Want to Keep Up With NewsOne.com? LIKE Us On Facebook! William Thursland, a court appointed attorney for Miguel, said the boy has been told who his biological parents are and the joint therapy sessions that began about a month ago are being used as ...
