Mother and boyfriend charged in toddler's death

Posted: Mar 23, 2012 2:42 PM by Tonya LaCoste
Updated: Jul 23, 2012 10:49 AM

A mother and her boyfriend are charged with first degree murder in the death of the woman's two-year-old son. According to Opelousas police, Latricia Hunt and Dominique Jackson were arrested after a four-month investigation. Opelousas police received the St. Landry Parish Coroner's ruling yesterday that the boy died from blunt force trauma.

On December 19 of last year, Hunt brought her unresponsive son to Opelousas General Hospital. "An autopsy was conducted and the preliminary results indicated the child had some evidence of fractures to his ribs and some abdominal damage," Opelousas Police Chief Perry Gallow said. Investigators said the abuse was at the hands of Jackson, and there were prior indications of possible abuse to the boy.

According to the mother, Jackson cared for her son the night before while she was at work. When she returned home, according to Gallow, Hunt said her son told her his stomach was hurting. When he became unresponsive the following morning, she drove him to the hospital. While investigating the boy's death, detectives found out the the toddler had previously been burned. "A few months prior to the boy's death, he sustained severe burns to his hands while in the care of Dominique Jackson while the mother was at work," Gallow said. According to Jackson, the two-year-old's hand was near the stove while he was cooking stew and the pot boiled over on his hand, said the police chief. The boy was treated at a burn center in Baton Rouge.

The incident was never reported to law enforcement by the mother, and the child wasn't brought to the doctor until the following day, Gallow said. Hunt and Jackson are in the Opelousas City Jail being held without bond. They both will go before a judge on Monday morning.