MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Prosecutors say a man has been charged with the beating death of a 4-year-old girl at a Memphis motel last year.
The Shelby County district attorney’s office says 25-year-old Richard Lassister was indicted Thursday on charges including first-degree murder in the perpetration of aggravated child abuse.
Investigators said the child’s mother - Lassister’s former girlfriend - was holding her unresponsive daughter when she flagged down police on April 14 outside a motel.
The girl, identified as Zamiya Taylor-Evans, died at the scene. She a cut above her left eye and severe bruises on her face, chest and back.
According to investigators, the girl’s mother said she left her daughter in Lassister’s care when she left for work.
Lassister’s public defender did not return a call Thursday.
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