Boy, 8, charged with killing 1-year-old sister

A 6-year-old left in the care of the child who killed Kelci gave an account of the incident that matched with the baby’s injuries, Birmingham police spokesman Lt. Sean Edwards said. She suffered severe head trauma and damage to internal organs, Edwards said.

Police said Lewis left her one-year-old, Kelci, together with several children aged two to eight, while she and the friend went out clubbing.

“This is one of the most heartbreaking investigations that I have seen in over 30 years of my law enforcement career”, said Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper. The Jefferson County coroner ruled the death a homicide, CNN reports.

There “are going to be very serious questions about whether an 8-year-old has the rational capacity for the proceedings against him”, Mr. Smith said.

A warrant has been issued against the boy, who is now being housed by Alabama’s Department of Human Resources. Right now were just trying to find out what they have, Anthony said, declining further comment before Lewiss preliminary hearing.

Lewis turned herself in on Monday and posted a $15,000 bond.

For the infant’s mother, the cost could go well beyond any possible sentence if convicted of manslaughter. After she was beaten, Kelci was placed back inside her crib – where she remained until she was found dead there by her mother the following morning. A similar situation is playing out in Tennessee right now after an 11-year-old boy was charged with murder after shooting an 8-year-old girl. They did not check on the children when they returned, and police were called at around 10.30am but it was too late to save Kelci, Lt Edwards said. Although she is now being charged with manslaughter for leaving her daughter unattended, Lewis has since been attending vigils for her daughter.

“This is an 8-year-old…and it’s hard to process an 8-year-old going to that extreme level of violence”, Edwards said.

The eight-year-old responsible for Kelci’s death isn’t the youngest child accused of murder in United States history.

Her killer is thought to be one of the youngest ever murder defendants.