REMEMBERING JAYNIAH

Jayniah Watkins was only three months old. Born in December 2014, she had barely begun experiencing the world around her when concerns about her safety began to emerge. During the first months of Jayniah’s life, social workers saw her repeatedly. Reports from those visits described her as healthy and in good condition. She was a tiny baby entirely dependent upon the adults surrounding her. When professionals determined that her mother’s severe mental illness could place Jayniah in danger, they removed her from her mother’s custody. The purpose was clear. Jayniah needed to be protected. She was placed with a relative under instructions intended to keep her separated from the danger authorities had already identified. Less than two weeks later, Jayniah was dead.

JAYNIAH’S STORY

Jayniah was born to Deasia Watkins and James Brown in December 2014. Within weeks of her birth, Deasia began experiencing serious psychiatric problems. Court documents described increasingly alarming behavior, including hallucinations and talk about demons. Deasia was hospitalized and diagnosed with postpartum psychosis. Doctors determined that she posed a danger to Jayniah unless she was taking her prescribed medication. Child welfare officials became involved.

Initially, Jayniah remained with her father while social workers monitored the family. Workers reportedly checked on Jayniah repeatedly and found her healthy and in good condition. But concerns about Deasia continued. A February 24 social worker’s statement reported that Deasia was not taking her medication. On March 6, 2015, a juvenile court judge ordered three month old Jayniah removed from her mother’s custody and placed in the custody of Hamilton County Job and Family Services.

The agency placed Jayniah temporarily with Deasia’s aunt, Jayniah’s great aunt. There was an explicit restriction. Deasia was not supposed to have contact with Jayniah unless social workers were present. Despite that restriction, the relative entrusted with Jayniah’s care allowed Deasia to move into the home. Authorities later said she had apparently been living there for approximately a week. Social workers did not know. On March 12, a social worker visited the home for approximately half an hour.

Deasia was not there  The following day, March 13, social workers saw Jayniah at a Job and Family Services facility. She appeared healthy and in good condition.

Three days later, on March 16, a five year old relative arrived at the home while waiting for a school bus. The child discovered Jayniah on the kitchen counter. She had been murdered. Police responding to the 911 call found that Jayniah had been stabbed repeatedly with a large kitchen knife and decapitated. Her right arm was fractured. Authorities said the knife had been placed in Jayniah’s hand. Deasia was found elsewhere inside the home, lying in a bed and covered in blood. She was hospitalized before being taken into custody.

SYSTEM FAILURES & WARNING SIGNS

Unlike many child abuse cases, authorities had already recognized that Jayniah faced a specific danger. Doctors had diagnosed Deasia with postpartum psychosis. They had determined that she was unsafe around her infant daughter unless she took prescribed medication. Child welfare authorities knew that Deasia had stopped taking that medication. A juvenile court intervened. Jayniah was removed from her mother’s custody. Hamilton County Job and Family Services assumed custody and placed her with a relative. The caregiver was instructed that Deasia was not to have contact with Jayniah unless social workers were present. Yet the safety plan depended upon that caregiver following the restriction. She did not. The great aunt allowed Deasia to move into the same home where Jayniah had been placed for protection. Authorities later said social workers did not know that had happened. Workers continued checking on Jayniah. They visited the home on March 12 and did not find Deasia there. They saw Jayniah again on March 13, when she appeared healthy. Three days later, she was dead. Prosecutors defended the actions of Hamilton County Job and Family Services, saying the agency had followed the court’s orders, found a relative placement and checked on Jayniah numerous times.mThe protection failed at the placement itself. Jayniah had been legally removed from danger. But physically, she was placed back within reach of it. The danger surrounding Jayniah had been identified before her death. Deasia had experienced severe psychiatric symptoms. She had reportedly spoken about demons and behaved in ways that alarmed those around her. She was hospitalized. She was diagnosed with postpartum psychosis. Doctors determined that she could be unsafe around Jayniah without treatment and medication. A social worker reported that she was not taking her medication. A judge removed Jayniah from her custody. The caregiver who received Jayniah was specifically instructed to prevent unsupervised contact between mother and child. Those were not subtle warning signs. They were the reason Jayniah had been removed in the first place.

JUSTICE FOR JAYNIAH

Deasia Watkins was initially charged with aggravated murder. Her severe mental illness became a major issue throughout the criminal proceedings. She initially pleaded not guilty and later entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. In April 2015, a judge found Deasia incompetent to stand trial and ordered her transferred to a psychiatric facility for treatment intended to restore her competency. She was subsequently determined competent to proceed. The legal question was not whether Deasia had suffered from serious mental illness. Her attorneys and prosecutors acknowledged that she had. The dispute concerned whether her illness met Ohio’s legal standard for insanity at the time she killed Jayniah. In February 2017, Deasia ultimately abandoned the insanity defense and pleaded guilty to murder. She was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.

 

Deasia Watkins

Relationship to Jayniah: Mother
Conviction: Murder
Outcome: Guilty plea
Sentence: 15 years to life in prison

FOREVER REMEMBERED

Jayniah’s story contains a particularly painful contradiction. Adults recognized that she needed protection. A doctor recognized the danger. Social workers became involved. A judge intervened. Custody was taken away from her mother. A safety restriction was put in place. Jayniah was supposed to be safe. And still, she died. Only three days before her murder, social workers saw Jayniah and described her as healthy and in good condition. She was a living, growing baby. Three days later, she was gone. The horrific circumstances of Jayniah’s death became the focus of headlines across the country. But Jayniah was not simply the victim at the center of a disturbing criminal case. She was a baby girl. She had a name. She had just three months to be held, fed, comforted and loved. She deserved years of birthdays. She deserved first words and first steps. She deserved kindergarten, childhood and adulthood. The system had already determined that Jayniah needed protection. She deserved for that protection to hold. Abuse Angels remembers Jayniah Watkins. Remembered. Honored. Never Forgotten.