More than a month after a 9-year-old boy died in Kingstree, South Carolina, a Williamsburg County couple is charged with homicide by child abuse in his death.
Bobby Joe Fulton, Jr., 32, was arrested on Friday and charged with homicide according to the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED).
Tasha Temeeka McFadden, 42 was arrested on Monday and charged with homicide by child abuse, aiding and abetting — which is a lesser charge.
Per South Carolina law, SLED must investigate all child fatalities.
According to arrest warrants, Fulton “inflicted serious injury” on the boy between 9:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. December 29, 2020.
Fulton “exercised extreme indifference to human life while using blunt force to cause injuries” to the child which led to his death, according to police.
He didn’t take the child to the hospital or call 911, according to the arrest warrants.
McFadden is accused of allowing Fulton to beat the child to death, law enforcement officials said in the warrants.
She told police that she knew of two incidents in which Fulton abused the 9-year-old child and she didn’t do anything about it, according to arrest warrants.
McFadden is accused of neglecting to act upon knowing that the child was being abused, which allowed Fulton to continue to harm the child, according to police.
Fulton faces 20 years to life in prison for his charge, while McFadden faces 10 to 20 years in prison.
Both Fulton and McFadden were charged with unlawful neglect of a child in the incident earlier this month, according to the Kingstree News.
The Kingstree News reported that Fulton abused McFadden’s two other children, according to police reports.
Fulton and McFadden were booked at the at the Williamsburg County Detention Center. The 3rd Circuit Solicitor’s Office will prosecute both cases.
The Kingstree murder is the second fatal homicide by child abuse case in South Carolina this year.
In January, Jerry Austin Robinson, 34, and Ariel Robinson, 29, were both charged with homicide by child abuse in the death of their 3-year-old adopted daughter Victoria Rose Smith.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, more than 25,000 people have signed a petition asking state lawmakers to reform the South Carolina Department of Social Services (SCDSS) — a scandal scarred agency whose failures are now in the national spotlight.
According to SCDSS Office of Child Fatalities, more than 20 S.C. children die every year due to maltreatment by a caregiver.
In 2020, 24 children in South Carolina died due to maltreatment, and six children died because of abuse.
To report child abuse in South Carolina, please call 1-888-CARE-4-US or use this online portal.
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