Trigger Warning: This article contains graphic details of child abuse and the death of a minor
The people of Michigan were left shocked in a recent case involving a babysitter who made headlines. The woman has been charged with the brutal killing of her friend’s 3-year-old daughter while babysitting the child in 2024. Detroit native Iesha Harris pleaded guilty on Monday as she was charged with second-degree murder in the tragic death of little Harmoni Henderson.
Initially, Harris was charged with felony murder and first-degree child abuse. Still later, a plea made the court drop the abuse charges. The incident took place on March 17, 2024, at a residence along Southfield Freeway.
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Authorities say the babysitter had locked the child in a room with her own 1-year-old for several hours while she smoked marijuana. When she returned and found Harmoni had vomited on herself, Harris got angry, hit her head in a bathtub and killed her.
According to the Detroit Police Department, when the officers arrived at the scene, they found the little girl with horrific trauma. As per The Mirror, Harmoni was transported to a hospital but died due to her injuries. Meanwhile, prosecutors claimed that Iesha Harris was a good friend of Harmoni’s mother and was babysitting her for the night at the time of the incident.
Harmoni’s mother spoke to WDIV and said, “She was having a hard time. My baby is autistic, nonverbal. I think she got frustrated with her, plus her daughter, and she slammed my baby’s head against the tub.”
Furthermore, as per the Mirror, Harris allegedly admitted to the cops that she had poured steaming hot water all over the deceased victim’s head and face. What’s even sadder is that when Harmoni’s mother rang up Harris to check up on her daughter, she told her that Harmoni had fallen down the stairs and bumped her head. But she was fine otherwise.
The following day, when Harmon’s mother arrived to pick her up, she was found lying in bed unconscious and unresponsive.
“She was already dead from the moment that I got there,” the mother told WJBK. “She was gone.”
Meanwhile, Capt. Laurie Carter, head of the Detroit Police Special Victims Unit, said that the details of the toddler’s death left him very disturbed. As Harmoni’s mother battles to accept her daughter’s untimely death, she asserted to WDIV, “Nothing like this should ever happen to a child.”
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The mother claimed that she “trusted her wholeheartedly” and never believed that she would kill her baby girl in such an evil way. Presently, Iesha Harris is scheduled to appear before Circuit Judge Kelly Ramsey on May 29 for her sentencing hearing. Owing to her charges, she could receive life imprisonment at the Michigan State prison.
The growing number of crimes related to toddlers and infants in states like Michigan raises serious questions about safety today. Please take major precautions as parents and make sure to double-verify everyone your child is exposed to, from the babysitter to the people at school. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.
Michigan’s police department should also look into these cases with thorough precision and make sure the criminals are brutally punished. Perhaps, it’s rightly said, sometimes the people we love and trust the most are the ones who can betray us in a heartbeat.
