Marissa Kennedy died on February 25
Lawmakers in Maine have authorized a probe into the state’s handling of abuse complaints, after a 10-year-old girl was allegedly beaten to death by her parents in a case the state’s governor called a ‘comedy of errors’.
The Maine Legislature’s Government Oversight Committee voted on Friday to investigate the February 25 death of 10-year-old Marissa Kennedy in Stockton Springs.
School officials have said that they repeatedly contacted the Maine Department of Health and Human Services with suspicions that Marissa was being abused at home.
Marissa’s mother, 33-year-old Sharon Carrillo, and stepdad, 51-year-old Julio Carrillo, admitted to taking turns beating her on a daily basis for five months, according to police. Both are charged with murder.
Parents charged: Mom Sharon Carrillo, 33, and stepdad Julio Carrillo, 51, have been charged with murdering Sharon’s biological daughter, 10-year-old Marissa Kennedy
Marissa died of horrific injuries after allegedly being beaten daily for five months. Now Maine’s Legislature is opening a probe into her death and how state agencies handle abuse complaints
An autopsy indicated Marissa was a victim of battered child syndrome with injuries including bleeding on the brain and a lacerated liver.
According to court documents cited by WTSP, Julio told police he and Sharon would punish Marrisa by forcing her to knee on a tile floor in the kitchen – because it hurt more than other surfaces – and raise her hands above her head while they repeatedly whipped her with a leather belt.
They also said they would hit the 10-year-old with open hands and first in her abdomen and sides, or use a metal mop handle until one day it broke from the force of the blows to the girl’s ribs.
When they parents were not beating her, they would lock Marissa in a closet for long periods of time. Sharon reportedly told police the girl would scream nonstop during her punishments.
The abuse began in October 2017 and continued until February 22 or 23. By that point, Marissa could no longer walk or talk without slurring her words.
An autopsy indicated Marissa was a victim of battered child syndrome with injuries including bleeding on the brain and a lacerated liver
Marissa is seen at a younger age in an undated photo.
Her stepfather told police his wife thought Marissa was faking her condition, so she beat her at least one more time.
Sharon later told police that after Marissa’s death, her husband carried her body to the boiler room and staged the scene to try and cover up the crime.
After calling 911, Julio carried Marissa to an upstairs bedroom, where she was found by police lying on the floor under a blanket.
The family, which includes the Carrillos’ two other children, ages one and two, had been staying at a condo owned by the mother’s parents.
State police say the couple’s two younger children were present in the home at the time of their older sister’s death. The Maine DHHS took custody of the other children.
In the weeks since Marissa’s death, DHHS itself has come under increasing scrutiny, after Bangor’s superintendent of schools has said the district contacted DHHS on ‘a number of occasions’ while the girl was attending school there.
On Wednesday, Maine’s Republican Governor Paul DePage publicly criticized police, child welfare workers, school officials, and lawmakers, telling WCSH-TV that the failure of anyone to prevent Marissa’s death was a ‘comedy of errors’ and that ‘everybody messed this up.’
‘The system has clearly failed her,’ said Republican state Senator Roger Katz, co-chairman of the watchdog committee, the Bangor Daily News reported. ‘We all failed her.’
Marissa was found unresponsive at this condo complex in Stockton Springs, Maine on Feb. 25
The Legislature’s probe will also examine the December death of 4-year-old Kendall Chick of Wiscasset. A report is due in May.
Maine DHHS Commissioner Ricker Hamilton told WGME this week that he was ‘deeply saddened’ by Marissa’s death, and that his department had opened an internal review and was cooperating with state police investigators.
Last weekend, Julio Carrillo was jumped and beaten unconscious by another inmate who shouted ‘I’ll kill you, baby killer’ while they were both held in the Two Bridges Regional Jail.
Paul Andrews, 34, was charged with misdemeanor assault and criminal threatening in the incident. He was being held at the jail pending trial for allegedly raping a child under the age of 12.
Sharron Carrillo is also being held at Two Bridges, and is seven months pregnant.
Both Julio and Sharron Carrillo have had bail set at $500,000 cash. They are next due in court for a status conference hearing at 1pm on April 30.
Marissa’s funeral will be held on Saturday at St. Mary’s Church in Newburgh, New York, where family members helped raise her before she moved to Maine.
In lieu of flowers, the family has said that donations can be made to the Maine Children’s Trust in memory of Marissa.