A Pennsylvania couple has been charged with the death of their 2-year-old son. According to Penn Live , the young boy was found dead in his bedroom in 2017 with a plastic bag over his head.
Steven Killion Sr., 36, and Toni Baker, 37, were charged with involuntary manslaughter as well as endangering the welfare of their other children. The manslaughter charges allege that the recklessness of the pair caused the death of Steven Killion Jr.
Killion told investigators that he gave his son a gallon-sized plastic bag with cereal to keep him quiet and locked him up in his bedroom. The 36-year-old father said he forgot to check up on him before going to bed like he usually did. According to him, he woke up around 8 a.m. and found the toddler on the bedroom floor with the plastic bag over his head.
Killion said he brought him downstairs and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation before the paramedics arrived. Unfortunately, Steven Killion Jr. was confirmed dead at a nearby hospital. An autopsy determined the boy had died of suffocation.
A police report revealed that the boy, as well as his two siblings, lived in dehumanizing conditions. The report disclosed that the toddler slept in a small plastic bed with no sheets or pillow. It also noted that dried feces were found on the walls and windows of his bedroom.
The couple was also charged for putting the lives of their 14-year-old autistic son and 6-year-old daughter at risk. They were accused of leaving the older boy, unattended many times, knowing very well that he had an inclination to hurt himself when agitated. One time, the teen needed staples to close a head wound after banging his head repeatedly against a wall.
Police say his own bedroom had no bedding, only a few articles of clothing, and was strewn with cereal. His sister’s room contained a bed with no pillow. Investigators revealed that they found bite marks on the window blinds.
Law enforcement officers also accessed the cell phone records of Baker and Killion as part of their investigations. In one of the text messages seen by WNEP News, Baker told her husband that the kids were driving her crazy and that she was ready to kill them.
“I can’t handle these kids; I’m ready to strangle them.”
