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On August 10, seven-year-old Julissia Batties was found dead in her Bronx, New York City home. The little girl had been placed in her mother’s home a few months prior.
Julissia was found dead after having suffered injuries to her stomach, arms, and face.
The young girl’s 17-year-old half-brother admitted to beating on her after accusing her of taking snacks.
Yahoo reported that the unidentified teen said his little sister spent the night eating snacks from the kitchen and that he saw her throwing up in her bedroom.
He then punched her twice in the face. She fell once she got to the bathroom and began vomiting. The teen later admitted he thought he hit Julissia eight times and that scratches on her body were from his long nails.
Navasia Jones, Julissia’s mother, later arrived, picked Julissia up, and put her on the couch where she fell asleep.
The mother went to the convenience store, and when she returned home, they noticed Julissia was choking and that her hands were turning white. The mother ran to her neighbors, yelling for help.
The New York Times reported that Michael Roberts, a neighbor, said a couple of days before the incident, his girlfriend had called the police after seeing Julissia with a black eye.
“There was always a lot of commotion, always yelling, always screaming,” Michael said.
Roberts said the day of the incident, Navasia was banging on all her neighbors’ doors and crying out for help, saying, “My baby can’t breathe!”
In tears over the sudden and violent death of his baby girl, Julius Batties told WCBS, “She said that she loved me and that I was the best dad. I feel like I failed my baby.”
“She was crying out for help. Nobody did nothing for my baby. I just want justice for my baby,” he added.
According to Julius, his daughter Julissia moved in with his mom, Yolanda Davis, when she was five days old. She was raised with the woman in Crown Heights until her mother won custody of her in March 2020.
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Davis said she feels as if the Administration for Children’s Services decision to return Julissia into her mother’s custody was a mistake and, if prevented, could have saved her life.
“I have fought. I have done hearings. I have done interviews. They told me I to do an independent review,” said Davis.
“I begged them not to let her go back to her mother, and now we’re here,” she said. “They have failed me, my son. They have also failed my granddaughter, big time.”
“I’m very numb. I’m very hurt,” she said. “I need justice to be done,” she added.
No charges had been filed, and a medical examiner’s report to determine the official cause of Julissia’s death is currently in the works.