A man who was killed Saturday morning in a single-vehicle crash on I-85 in Atlanta had a pending criminal case in Hall County that included murder and child cruelty charges, the Hall County District Attorney’s Office confirmed Monday.
Jerrail Maurice Mickens, 32, was found unresponsive by Atlanta police after his motorcycle crashed around 1 a.m. in the northbound lanes at Cheshire Bridge Road, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. His motorcycle was found several feet away, investigators said.
Mickens, who was out on bond at the time of the crash, was charged in the death of his 5-year-old daughter, Kylie Mickens. His wife, Porscha Danielle Mickens, 29, faces the same charges.
They were both arrested Oct. 27, 2020, four months after the girl died. The following month, they were released on bond.
Hall County District Attorney Lee Darragh said Jerrail Mickens’ death won’t stop officials from going forward with the case.
“The fact of the matter is his wife is also charged and we will continue the case against her,” Darragh told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Kylie weighed just seven pounds in June 2020. She was unresponsive when her parents took her to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton for treatment, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said at the time. She was flown to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite and died the next day.
The two were charged after an autopsy conducted by the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office determined Kylie died from malnutrition and dehydration due to medical neglect, authorities said.
Defense attorney Corinne Mull said the child was born with a chromosomal deficiency that made it difficult for her to eat and drink, preventing her from gaining weight. Mull said Kylie suffered from 1p36 deletion syndrome, a rare disorder that typically causes severe intellectual disability, weak muscle tone and trouble swallowing.
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