A 40-year-old Washington, D.C., man fatally beat a two-month-old girl in a jealous rage before attempting to blame the injuries on his six-year-old autistic son, prosecutors allege.
asserted
prosecutors → beat → son
Demetrius Beatty faces murder charges in the death of two-month-old Khamyah Honesty.
asserted
Beatty → face → Honesty
According to court records cited by CBS affiliate WUSA9, police were called to an apartment building on New Jersey Avenue in Southeast Washington around 9:45 p.m. on August 16, where they found Beatty holding the unresponsive infant.
uncertain
Beatty → accord → infant
The baby was found unconscious with facial bruising, head trauma and bleeding in her eyes.
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baby → find → eyes
She was pronounced dead at Children’s National Hospital early the following morning.
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She → pronounce → Hospital
A forensic pathologist found that Khamyah suffered severe fractures to her forehead, the back of her head and beneath her chin, confirming the injuries were non-accidental and could not have been inflicted by a young child, WUSA9 reported.
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WUSA9 → find → child
Prosecutors argued that Beatty killed the infant — who was born eight weeks premature and was a twin — out of resentment because the children were fathered by another man while Beatty and the mother were in a relationship.
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Beatty → argue → relationship
Court documents indicate that Beatty had threatened the mother eight days prior to the incident, warning that he would kill the children if she left them with him.
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she → indicate → him
The mother testified that Beatty made similar death threats when she went to visit the twins’ biological father, who is currently incarcerated.
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who → testify → father
During a 911 call placed from a neighbor’s phone, Beatty attempted to blame his nonverbal, six-year-old autistic son, telling dispatchers: “I have an autistic son, and I have a 2-month-old daughter.
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I → place → daughter
I guess my autistic son got to the 2-month-old daughter and was fighting her, and he damaged her pretty good.”
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he → guess → her
Beatty added, “Her face is swollen, her nose is bleeding.
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nose → add → ?
I need help quick.”
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I → need → help
When police and social workers questioned Beatty, he was unable to remember or spell Khamyah’s name, initially calling her “Maya,” court documents show.
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documents → question → her
Investigators noted that Beatty offered shifting accounts to police, claiming at various points that he was in the hallway making a call, that another seven-year-old child had “tossed” the baby, or that he was playing ball with the children when the injury occurred.
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injury → note → children
Beatty was arrested on September 16, a month after the infant’s death, before making his initial court appearance the following day.
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Beatty → arrest → appearance
Defense attorneys pushed for Beatty’s release under 24-hour home confinement, noting that he called 911 immediately and had raised the children as his own without prior history of physical abuse against them.
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he → push → them
The defense also pointed to the six-year-old’s history of behavioral issues, noting the mother’s statements that the boy possessed significant physical strength.
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boy → point → strength
However, the judge denied pretrial release, pointing to Beatty’s prior probation revocation, which had resulted in a 45-day jail sentence.
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which → deny → sentence
The living conditions inside the apartment were described by Metropolitan Police Department officers as “filthy and cluttered,” with stained walls, piles of laundry and burnt aluminum foil floating in a toilet.
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conditions → describe → toilet
First responders stated that the surviving twin suffered from severe diaper rash, while another one-year-old child in the home had a healing burn on her back.
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child → state → back
Concerns regarding the welfare of the children had been raised prior to the fatal incident.
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Concerns → regard → incident
Court records show that a relative of the twins’ father had contacted the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency multiple times over the preceding two months.
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relative → show → months
In one instance, Beatty allegedly locked the infant twins inside a closet.
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Beatty → lock → closet
Additionally, medical staff disputed the mother’s account of a prior incident at the Congress Heights Metro Station 16 days before Khamyah’s death, during which the infant reportedly fell roughly 75 feet down an escalator after slipping from a car seat.
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infant → dispute → seat
Following Beatty’s arrest, the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency took custody of the four surviving children present in the home.
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Agency → follow → home
Beatty is scheduled to appear back in court on September 28.
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Beatty → schedule → September
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