A Wyoming couple was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter after their infant daughter was found in inhumane conditions inside a filthy, trash-filled home.
Bailey Bettinson, 22, and Tevin Medina, 30, were charged Monday by Unita County Prosecutor Loretta Howieson-Kallas.
Each parent was charged with involuntary manslaughter and one count of felony child abuse following the death of their daughter in October 2023. Cowboy State Diary reported.
Little Renezmae Medina was found unconscious in her home at Rocky Point Apartments on Feather Way in the early morning hours of October 20.
The nine-month-old girl had a diaper rash so horrible it eroded her flesh, which was discovered by medical staff conducting an abuse and neglect evaluation at Evanston Regional. Unita County Herald reported.
If convicted, the couple could face up to 20 years in prison for the involuntary manslaughter charge and an additional 10 years for child abuse.
The baby’s mother, Bailey Bettinson, 22, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and one count of felony child abuse in the October 2023 death of her daughter, identified as RM.
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,’ according to court documents.
Medical staff discovered “unexplained bruising in the peri area,” according to court documents. The peri area includes tissue that forms the bottom of the pelvic cavity.
The girl also had large abrasions around her vaginal area, right buttock and right leg, investigators alleged.
Medical staff also told investigators that the abrasions were due to a diaper rash that was extensive and that “the rash appeared to penetrate both flesh and skin,” according to court documents.
An autopsy performed by Randall Frost, the state medical examiner, could not determine the cause of the boy’s death, but noted that “‘He could not rule out a death due to asphyxiation’ and was investigating further, according to the media outlet.
On October 20, around 4:27 a.m., Detective Scott Faddis of the Evanston Police Department responded to a report of an unresponsive baby at a home at 215 Feather Way, Rocky Point Apartments.
The baby’s mother was performing CPR on her daughter when Faddis arrived.
When he touched the baby’s skin, she was cold to the touch and going into rigor mortis, according to an affidavit.
The baby’s father told police in a later report that he took his other stepson, a three-year-old girl, out of the house so he wouldn’t have to see her unconscious brother, 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 rotten food and a dirty diaper with feces exposed on top of a pile of trash.
The stench from the apartment was so strong that detectives had to take breaks during their investigation. A neighbor reportedly 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, a drawn hunting knife displayed on top of a dryer of clothes and Medina’s tattoo gun and needles inside. reach of small children.
Medina’s stepdaughter was later taken into protective custody by the Wyoming Department of Family Services due to “filthy and unsafe living conditions at the defendant’s residence,” according to the affidavit.
It was revealed that an Evanston police 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 a statement. sworn
“The residence was filled with animal feces, rotting odors, mold, clothing and numerous other dirty items,” according to court documents.
Management also provided photographs to police, which were also sent to the Department of Family Services along with the incident report.
The affidavit revealed that DFS has been to the home on two other occasions (September 6, 2022 and September 21, 2022) for poor living conditions.