A Wyoming couple has been arrested and charged with manslaughter after their infant daughter was found living in inhumane conditions in a house full of filthy garbage.
Bailey Bettinson, 22, and Tevin Medina, 30, were charged Monday by Unita County State’s Attorney Loretta Howieson-Kallas.
Each parent was charged with manslaughter and one count of child abuse following the death of their daughter in October 2023. Cowboy stands daily reported.
Little Renezmae Medina was found unresponsive in her home at the Rocky Point Apartments on Feather Way in the early morning hours of October 20.
The nine-month-old had such a terrible diaper rash that it eroded her flesh – which was discovered by medical staff conducting an abuse and neglect investigation at Evanston Regional, Unita County Herald reported.
If convicted, the couple could face up to 20 years in prison for manslaughter and an additional 10 years for child abuse.
The baby’s mother, Bailey Bettinson, 22, has been charged with manslaughter and one count of child abuse in the October 2023 death of their infant daughter, identified as R.M.
The baby’s father, Tevin Medina, 30, and his wife face up to 30 years in prison
Baby Renezmae Medina had large abrasions around her vaginal area, right buttock and right leg, investigators alleged, and unexplained bruising in the “peri-area,” court documents show
Medical staff discovered “unexplained bruising in the ‘peri-area,'” court documents show. The peri-region includes tissue that forms the floor of the pelvic cavity.
The child also had large abrasions around her vaginal area, right buttock and right leg, investigators alleged.
The medical staff also told investigators that the abrasions were the result of a diaper rash that was so extensive that “the rash appeared to extend into both the flesh and the skin,” according to court documents.
An autopsy conducted by State Medical Examiner Randall Frost could not determine the child’s cause of death, but he noted that he “could not rule out a death by asphyxiation,” and investigated further, the news source said.
On October 20 around 4:27 a.m., Detective Scott Faddis of the Evanston Police Department responded to a report of an unresponsive infant at a home at 215 Feather Way, the Rocky Point Apartments.
The baby’s mother was resuscitating her daughter when Faddis arrived.
When he touched the baby’s skin, she felt cold and developed rigor mortis, according to an affidavit.
The baby’s father told police in a later report that he took his other stepchild, a three-year-old girl, outside so they wouldn’t have to witness their unresponsive sibling, the Cowboy State Daily reported.
Investigators reported in an affidavit that the couple’s home was covered in dirt, pet urine and feces on the floors and walls. There was rotting food and a dirty diaper with visible feces on top of a pile of trash.
The stench from the apartment was so bad that detectives had to take breaks during their investigation. A neighbor told police they could smell the odor coming from the apartment.
The Rocky Mountain Apartments where baby Renezmae Medina was found unconscious on October 20, 2023
The state also alleged that the victim and Medina’s stepdaughter were exposed to other dangers in the home, including a pointed steak knife on the children’s bedroom floor next to dried vomit, an unsheathed hunting knife on top of a clothes dryer and Medina’s tattoo gun and needles inside. reach of young children.
Medina’s stepdaughter was later taken into protective custody by the Wyoming Department of Family Services due to the “filthy, unsafe living conditions in the defendant’s residence,” according to the affidavit.
It was revealed that an Evanston Police Department officer went to the couple’s home a month before the baby’s death after management called police because they were concerned about the children’s poor living conditions, according to an affidavit .
“The home was littered with animal feces, putrid odors, mold, clothing and many other filthy items,” according to court documents.
Management also provided police with photographs, which were also sent to the Department of Family Services along with the incident report.
The affidavit revealed that DFS had attended the home two more times – on September 6, 2022 and on September 21, 2022 – due to poor living conditions.