BRONX, N.Y. — A 1-year-old Bronx girl has died about a week after her mother’s boyfriend allegedly beat her so severely that doctors were forced to remove part of her skull, authorities said.
Imani Mitchell, 1, was rushed to Harlem Hospital in critical condition on Aug. 28 after Jerome Thomas, 19, who was watching her at the time, allegedly “struck the child twice on the side of the head with a heavy hand,” according to prosecutors and police.
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The infant suffered extensive subdural hemorrhaging on the right side of her head, leading to severe swelling, intracranial pressure, and brain herniation, the criminal complaint revealed. Doctors performed emergency surgery to remove part of her skull, but despite life support measures, Imani died on Friday, the NYPD confirmed.
Authorities said the assault occurred around 9:30 p.m. inside the family’s Woodstock neighborhood apartment on Union Avenue near East 152nd Street, after Imani’s mother left her in Thomas’ care.
Thomas was arrested on Aug. 29 and initially charged with felony assault, reckless endangerment, and endangering the welfare of a child, court records show. He is currently held without bail at Rikers Island, and prosecutors said his charges could be upgraded to homicide pending a grand jury indictment. Thomas is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 18.
Neighbor Reactions and Troubled Home Life
Neighbor Nicole LaCroix said she met Imani and her family shortly after they moved in and remembered the toddler as “an active, playful little girl.”
“I held the baby … she was playing with my phone. She was such an active one-year-old,” LaCroix said.
However, LaCroix added that her daughter frequently overheard loud arguments from the apartment.
“They fight every night,” she said. “I’ve heard them argue … yelling, cursing, throwing clothes out, and then they’d be back together the same day. I wish I would have stepped in and helped.”
Authorities confirmed that Imani’s death has been ruled a homicide, and the investigation is ongoing.
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