http://www.journalpatriot.com/news/article_9d292f72-5961-11e0-98a8-00127992bc8b.html
The Wilkes County Rumor Mill is in full swing at this point, according to a discussion on www.gowilkes.com Wilkes County DSS had already removed this child from her parents care and place her with her grandmother. Any news stations looking into this story should request disclosure under North Carolina General Statute § 7B‑2902. Disclosure in child fatality or near fatality cases.
If this child had been removed from the mother’s custody and placed with the Grandmother, how was this man allowed access to this child? Where was DSS when the intial finding of the fractured skull were found, I believe if they have place a child in kinship care, that DSS is still the person who has custody of the child and is supposed to be aware of what is happening to that child. As many know, I believe from my past experience with them, that the Wilkes County Department of Social Services is corrupt and does not protect children. This case could very well be another example of their failures. I will keep you informed as this case updates.
Police say man tried to kill child
Posted: Monday, March 28, 2011 2:00 pm | Updated: 1:37 pm, Mon Mar 28, 2011.
Jule Hubbard
A Wilkes County man was arrested Sunday on one count of first-degree attempted murder in connection with an incident at Brenner Children’s Hospital in Winston-Salem.
Winston-Salem police arrested Jacob Andrew Minton, 26, of Shingle Gap Road, Millers Creek, at 1 p.m. Sunday, according to a press release from Capt. David Clayton of the Winston-Salem Police Department.
The police department’s criminal investigations division was contacted and assumed the investigation after the initial response of other Winston-Salem officers in reference to child abuse reported at 7:34 a.m. Sunday.
Clayton said the victim, a 2-year-old female, was hospitalized and was listed in stable condition Sunday. He said the victim and Minton aren’t related.
Clayton said the victim was at Brenner’s for treatment of injuries she received at home when hospital employees observed Minton assaulting the child while she was in a hospital bed and called police.
“Hospital personnel intervened and that saved her life,” he said. Clayton explained that they intervened by maintaining a physical presence with the child in the hospital room until police arrived and that Minton didn’t fully realize what was going on as police took him from the hospital.
Clayton said his information was that the 2-year-old’s mother was in the child’s room, but was asleep.
He said Minton didn’t resist and no weapons or other items were seized when he was arrested.
Wilkes County Sheriff Chris Shew identified the child’s mother as Melissa Hope Holland, 25, and said the child and mother live on Sheets Gap Road, which is north of Millers Creek in northwestern Wilkes.
He said his department was investigating the case as far as anything that possibly occurred in Wilkes.
The child was admitted to Wilkes Regional Medical Center Saturday afternoon because she was having seizures, said Shew. It was determined that she had a head injury and she was transported to Brenner’s by Baptist Hospital AirCare later Saturday, Shew said. No additional details have been released on this injury.
The Wilkes Sheriff’s Department began its investigation Sunday after it received notification from a WRMC representative about the matter, he said. The Wilkes Department of Social Services also notified the sheriff’s department about the matter.
Shew said Det. Nancy Graybeal is heading the investigation for the sheriff’s department.
Minton was placed in the Forsyth County Law Enforcement Detention Center in Winston-Salem under a $400,000 bond.
Authorities said anyone with information about the matter is asked to call the Wilkes Sheriff’s Department at 903-7600, Wilkes Crime Stoppers at 667-8900, the Winston-Salem Police Department at 336-773-7700 or Crime Stoppers in Winston-Salem at 336-727-2800.
UPDATE
Warrant: Suspect Tried To Suffocate 2-Year-Old Girl
Deputies Interview Victim’s Mother, Have Yet To Interview Suspect
POSTED: 3:11 pm EDT March 29, 2011
UPDATED: 5:15 pm EDT March 30, 2011
WILKES COUNTY, N.C. — Investigators in Wilkes County are trying to figure out what happened to a 2-year-old girl Saturday evening that injured her severely enough that she had to be airlifted to Brenner Children’s Hospital in Winston-Salem.
The girl was being treated at Brenner when police said her mother’s boyfriend, 26-year-old Jacob Andrew Minton, of Millers Creek, attacked the child. He’s facing a charge of attempted first-degree murder.
According to a warrant obtained by WXII, Minton pinched the girl’s nose and covered her mouth to prevent her from breathing, thumped her head, slapped her head and jabbed his finger into her stomach.
The warrant also states that the victim was being treated at the hospital for a subdural hematoma and a skull fracture that happened the night before. The girl was listed in critical condition on Wednesday afternoon.
Joyce Minton, who lives next door to the home where the victim lives, said she has no idea what happened Saturday night inside the home. Minton is not related to the suspect.
“It still breaks my heart that she’s in the hospital and not knowing whether it’s going to be alright,” Minton said.
Minton said she wants to know what happened to the girl, but more importantly, she’s hoping for the best.
Wilkes County Sheriff Chris Shew said the investigation into the crime has been difficult on his employees.
“Anytime there’s an injury involving a child it’s emotionally draining. We can relate to it more because most of us are parents and have small children,” Shew said. “This is one of those cases where you don’t just lay it down in the afternoon and go home. You take it home with you.”
|
Shew said investigators have interviewed the child’s mother, who isn’t being named. She hasn’t been charged with a crime. They have yet to interview Minton, Shew said. He’s being held in the Forsyth County Jail with bail set at $400,000.
Winston-Salem police said the girl’s mother invited Minton into the hospital room. Hospital staff then intervened when they saw Minton assaulting the girl as she lay in bed, police said.
Police said the girl’s mother may have been sleeping during the attack.
Shew said that even when the facts of the case become known, understanding the crime won’t be easy.
“It’s human nature to want to protect a child. No one can understand how anything like that can happen,” he said.
You can watch the video here
