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Queens Toddler's Death Ruled A Homicide

Jashya Brown's Grandmother Speaks To CBS 2 HD

FAR ROCKAWAY, N.Y. (CBS) ― Battered child syndrome – that was the official ruling issued Wednesday in the death of a Queens toddler.

Little Jashya Brown died at St. John's Hospital on Monday night – his body covered in bruises and bite marks.

His mother told police he was hurt while wrestling with his 5-year-old brother.

The question now is who really caused the injuries, and, ultimately, his death?

"For my baby to lose her baby …yeah it's killing me," DeShawn Purrington said.

Purrington is the mother of Sheree Brown, and she, in turn, is the mother of 2-year-old Jashya. The grandmother spoke to CBS 2 HD on Wednesday afternoon, and defended her daughter. But that was before the medical examiner said the boy's autopsy revealed his death is a homicide; the result of battered child syndrome.

After questioning Jashya's mother and her boyfriend, Daquean Williams, for several hours Tuesday, police at the 101st Precinct questioned them again on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, Mayor Michael Bloomberg commented on the tragic circumstances.

"There are some families that are terribly dysfunctional, and tragedies happen because there's no right answer in a lot of these cases," Bloomberg said. "I think society should have done more, but looking back, keep in mind that everything that ACS did was done the judge's consent."

But the city will have to look closely at the mother's long history with the Administration for Children's Services:

* 2006 -- children taken from mother

* 2007 -- mother completes training classes

* 2008 -- children are gradually returned

* 2008 -- ACS visits 30 times, most recently on Aug. 13.

Two years ago, ACS took all three of her children from Sharee Brown. But last year, she apparently worked to get her children back, completing anger management and parenting classes. This year, gradually, each child was returned; and ACS followed with 30 visits, the most recent being last Tuesday.

Statistics show that in more than 90 percent of cases in New York City, children are successfully reunited with parents. But this may not have been one of those times.

"Yes, we made mistakes with ACS, but we learn from our mistakes, we grow," Purrington said.

Please stay with CBS 2 HD and wcbstv.com for more on this developing story.

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