A Missouri man, upset when a toddler had not put on her pajamas, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder after the child was allegedly thrown to the floor, where she hit her head and later died, police said.
Jalen Dashawn Vaden, 22, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of child abuse, and Jasper County Prosecutor Theresa Kenney on Thursday charged him with second-degree murder and felony child abuse. He remains on a no-bond hold, Kenney told The Joplin Globe.
The charges allege Vaden inflicted serious injuries on the girl, "causing her head to strike the floor and that she died as result of those injuries," Kenney said.
A probable-cause affidavit filed Thursday by the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office said Vaden admitted to the acts during an interview with a sheriff’s deputy Wednesday, the Globe reported.
On Nov. 27, investigators from the Carl Junction Police Department were called to the home of 3-year-old Jayda Kyle, who was found unresponsive in her bedroom, police said.
Vaden was described as a "live-in boyfriend" of the child's mother by police, KOAM reported.
According to investigators, Vaden told Kyle to put on her pajamas. When she failed to do so, Valen allegedly threw the child to the floor, where she hit her head. When Kyle still had not put on the pajamas, Vaden allegedly threw the girl onto her bed two times, KOAM reported.
Investigators said that Vaden then allegedly grabbed Kyle’s leg, “tossing her face first” onto the floor, KOAM reported. Vaden then left the bedroom, returning a short time later to find the child bleeding and unresponsive, police said.
Kyle was taken to a hospital in Kansas City, where she died, police said.
Carl Junction police Chief Delmar Hasse said Kyle's mother was cleared of any wrongdoing, KOAM reported.
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