Not Even Out Of Middle School, 11-Year-Old Girl Is Facing Murder Charges Of A Two-Month Old

In a suburb outside of Cleveland, Ohio, on Friday, February 6, 2015, around 3 a.m., it was reported by several news outlets that an 11-year-old girl was accused of beating a two-month-old baby girl to death at her suburban home. The baby girl was staying overnight with the 11-year-old and her mother that night. They were all on the couch downstairs and the mother states that she fell asleep around 3 a.m. Yahoo reports in a press conference on Monday that police Chief Randy Ice stated as follows.

“The mother was awakened less than an hour later by her daughter, who was holding the badly injured infant. Ice said the 11-year-old had taken the infant upstairs. When she returned downstairs, the infant was bleeding and her head was badly swollen.”

The police chief went on to say that, “the girl did not show any remorse, I’m not sure she appreciated the gravity of what she did.”

The mother of the 11-year-old called 911 immediately, and the baby, Zuri Whitehead, was flown by helicopter to a children’s trauma center where she died shortly after.

Fox reports the following.

“Cuyahoga County Coroner’s office later ruled the death a homicide. The baby had massive injuries to her brain, liver, spleen and kidneys. Police Chief Randy Ice said he is considering offering counseling for officers who responded to the scene. ‘We’re having a hard time getting our head around this,’ he told reporters. ‘You don’t see something like this, hardly ever.’ “

Juvenile Judge Karen Lawson entered a not guilty plea for the girl on Monday, and ordered a competency hearing.

The following is according to USA Today.

“The mother of the 11-year-old and Zuri’s mother, Trina Whitehead, have known each other for five or six years but aren’t related. Trina Whitehead has three other children and had the 11-year-old girl’s mother keep Zuri, of Cleveland, overnight to give her a breather.“

The 11-year-old girl’s name is not being released at this time due to her age, but when she appeared in court she was all of 4 feet tall, 50 pounds, with her legs in shackles, and sobbing uncontrollably with her attorney and her mother. When she was asked by the judge if she understood the charges against her, she said yes, as reported by CNN WOIO on Monday.

The future of the 11-year-old remains to be seen while she is being held at the Lake County Juvenile Detention Center. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, the little girl who was still in middle school, must be 14 years old in Ohio to be tried as an adult. An 11-year-old can be sentenced to a state Department of Youth Services, however, until she is 21.

[Photo courtesy of browardbenchandbar.org]