FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A Fort Lauderdale woman, who is one of five people charged in the death of her 7-year-old son, appeared in court Thursday where she was ordered to be held in jail without bond.
Michelle Doe, 37, is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, aggravated child abuse and two counts of neglect of a child.
She was arrested Tuesday along with fours others: Tyreck Irvin, 21, the brother of the victim; James Graham, 70, the grandfather of victim; Mirlande Moltimer Ameda, 47, the owner of Samaritin Home Care Provider, Inc., and Cassandre Lassegue, 33, a nurse assigned to care for the victim for months prior to his death.
Graham is the only defendant who is not charged with murder. He is charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child, neglect of a child and failure to report child abuse. He was being held on a $22,000 bond, but is expected to be released on house arrest sometime Thursday.
According to Fort Lauderdale police, officers and Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue personnel responded to the victim’s home near the 1700 block of Southwest 11th Street shortly before 8 p.m. on Christmas Day last year in reference to a medical emergency.
Police said the boy, Deonte Atwell, was transported to Broward Health Medical Center where he was pronounced dead less than an hour later. Doctors, however, told detectives that it appeared he had been dead for quite some time before he arrived.
On Wednesday, Fort Lauderdale police issued a news release which stated that the investigation revealed that Deonte had a medical condition that required in-home medical services.
A separate news release from the Broward State Attorney’s Office stated that Deonte died of starvation and weighed about 7 pounds at the time of his death.
According to the state attorney’s office, Deonte “died of severe malnutrition and his bones were protruding through gaping holes in his skin, autopsy findings showed. The victim was diagnosed at birth as a ‘medically complex child’ with thoracic spina bifida and hydrocephalus, he had a breathing tube and feeding tube and required around-the-clock skilled nursing care.”
“Investigators found 264 unopened bottles of the victim’s feeding formula in the home, according to the evidence,” the news release continued. “The evidence also established that the victim died during a scheme to defraud Medicaid, conservatively estimated at more than $10,000 but less than $50,000.”
Detective Jacqueline Sanchez spoke to reporters Wednesday and said Lassegue, who was supposed to be caring for Deonte for months before his death, hadn’t even been going to his home as often as she was supposed to.
“Through the investigation, we determined that the nurse that was supposed to be going to the house was sometimes there, had filled out paperwork saying she was there, but she wasn’t. I believe that had she been there, maybe she could have seen the deterioration that Deonte was going through and maybe possibly had said something,” Sanchez said. “It’s sad to say that Deonte had suffered all the way through his death by the people that were supposed to be caring for him the most.”
In addition to the charges related to Deonte, Doe and Irvin are also charged with the neglect of two other boys, ages 9 and 16 at the time, who also lived in the same home.
A dependency hearing is being held Thursday for those children.
The Fort Lauderdale Police Department, the Broward State Attorney’s Office Child Fatality and Abuse Unit, and the State Attorney General’s Statewide Medicaid Fraud Control Unit conducted a joint investigation into Deonte’s death, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Homicide Detective Jennifer Saint Jean at 954-828-5570, Homicide Detective Jackie Sanchez at 954-828-5539, or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS (8477).