REMEMBERING RAIJON

Raijon Daniels was eight years old when his life ended in Richmond, California, on October 27, 2006.

He was remembered by his family as a little boy with a wide smile who loved dinosaurs. He loved them so much that he sometimes brought his toy dinosaurs to church.

Raijon also enjoyed video games, pizza, ice cream, and working on puzzles with his great grandmother, whom he affectionately called GG.

Those memories are important because Raijon's life was more than the terrible abuse he endured.

He was a son, a grandson, a student, and a little boy with favorite foods, toys, and activities.

At his funeral, approximately 250 family members, friends, and community members gathered to remember him.

His teacher from King Elementary School spoke about how much he would be missed.

Raijon deserved to grow up surrounded by the people and activities that brought him happiness.

Instead, his life ended after prolonged abuse inside his own home.

Raijon's Story

On October 27, 2006, Richmond police and emergency responders were called to the home of Teresa Marie Moses after she reported that her son had stopped breathing.

When officers arrived, they discovered disturbing conditions inside the apartment.

The home smelled strongly of household cleaner.

Raijon's bedroom had been kept locked. Investigators found duct tape on his bedding, and marks on his wrists suggested that he had been restrained.

Police also discovered that his room was equipped with a surveillance camera and an alarm designed to notify his mother when he got out of bed.

Raijon's body was covered with injuries.

There were chemical burns, rope burns, sores, bruises, scars, and other wounds in various stages of healing.

Investigators believed that the injuries showed a prolonged pattern of abuse.

Police also observed vomit around Raijon's mouth, raising concerns that he might have swallowed household cleaner or another poisonous substance.

His mother admitted to investigators that she had poured household cleaner on his genital area to discourage him from urinating on himself.

Raijon had reportedly been punished for behaviors such as wetting or soiling himself.

Authorities also learned that he had been given food mixed in a blender and kept isolated in his bedroom.

The coroner later determined that Raijon's death was a homicide caused by trauma associated with battered child syndrome.

His body showed evidence of repeated injuries consistent with being struck by a cord or strap.

Blood testing also revealed dangerously elevated acid levels, which the coroner believed were associated with starvation.

The medical findings established that Raijon had suffered extensive physical abuse over time.

Warning Signs and System Failures

Raijon's death raised serious questions about the opportunities authorities had to intervene before he died.

Contra Costa County child welfare officials had received at least three reports concerning Raijon's well being beginning in March 2005.

The first involved allegations made by his mother against another adult. Police investigated those allegations but did not find sufficient evidence to support criminal charges.

In May 2005, school officials contacted child welfare authorities about concerns involving Raijon's home situation.

Around that time, his mother informed King Elementary School that Raijon would no longer eat cafeteria meals because he was supposedly following a special diet.

She also withdrew him from the public school system.

In July 2005, authorities received another report after Raijon reportedly ran away from home and was found spending hours at a restaurant playground.

Despite these contacts, Raijon remained in his mother's care.

Contemporary reporting could not establish whether child welfare workers had visited the home following each report because the agency declined to disclose confidential case information.

By the time police entered the apartment in October 2006, Raijon had suffered extensive injuries and prolonged mistreatment.

His death demonstrated the danger of warning signs that remain unresolved while a child becomes increasingly isolated from teachers and other adults who might recognize abuse.

Raijon had been known to child welfare authorities.

He had attended school.

There had been reports concerning his safety.

Yet he remained in the home where he ultimately died.

JUSTICE FOR RAIJON

Teresa Marie Moses was arrested following Raijon's death.

Prosecutors initially charged her with torture and child endangerment. In September 2007, they added a murder charge after reviewing the medical evidence.

The case ultimately took a different legal course.

In 2009, three court appointed doctors concluded that Moses had been legally insane at the time of the abuse.

A judge found her not guilty by reason of insanity and ordered her committed to Napa State Hospital for psychiatric treatment.

This was not an ordinary acquittal or a prison sentence. The court's finding resulted in her confinement for treatment rather than punishment through a criminal conviction.

In 2013, a judge authorized Moses to leave the hospital under a state supervised outpatient treatment program.

In December 2016, court records show that she received an unconditional release.

Reporting published in October 2026 described Moses's work operating a program focused on trauma, grief, and rehabilitation for incarcerated people.

Her later activities do not change the findings concerning Raijon's death or the abuse he suffered.

 

Teresa Marie Moses

Relationship to Raijon: Mother

Conviction: Murder; Torture; Child endangerment

Sentence: Found not guilty by reason of insanity in 2009

 

Disposition: Committed to Napa State Hospital; later approved for supervised outpatient treatment in 2013 and granted unconditional release in December 2016

FOREVER REMEMBERED

Raijon Daniels was eight years old.

He endured injuries that no child should ever have suffered.

He was confined, restrained, burned, and subjected to repeated physical abuse.

The coroner concluded that years of trauma had contributed to his death.

But Raijon should never be remembered only through the injuries documented in his autopsy.

He was the little boy who loved dinosaurs.

He brought his toy dinosaurs to church.

He enjoyed pizza and ice cream.

He played video games and worked on puzzles with his great grandmother.

He had a wide smile that family members remembered after his death.

At his funeral, the people who loved him gathered to celebrate the child he had been.

Those memories deserve to remain alongside the truth about what happened to him.

Raijon should have celebrated his ninth birthday.

He should have continued learning, playing, making friends, and discovering new interests.

He should have had the opportunity to grow into adulthood.

Instead, his childhood ended at eight years old.

His life mattered before the investigation, before the criminal proceedings, and before the public learned about the abuse he endured.

Raijon was a child who deserved love, safety, and protection.

His name deserves to be remembered.

Abuse Angels remembers Raijon Daniels.

Remembered. Honored. Never Forgotten.