A 12-year-old boy has been arrested and charged as a juvenile with second-degree murder in the beating death of a 2-year-old in Prince George's County.
Sources told News4 that the 2-year-old was a foster child staying at the home where the alleged incident happened Tuesday in the 1800 block of Taylor Avenue in Fort Washington, Md. She had been placed in foster care by the courts in order to keep her safe, News4's Derrick Ward reported.
Police said the father of the boy called 911 at about 5 p.m. for a report of an unresponsive 2-year-old girl in the home. The father performed CPR on the child, who was eventually transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
An autopsy on the girl showed that she died of blunt force trauma.
Police said they conducted interviews at the home and found that the 12-year-old allegedly beat the toddler repeatedly until she was unconscious. Two other children -- ages 15 and 4 -- were home at the time of the alleged incident. They have not been charged with any crimes.
The 12-year-old boy is being held at Boys Village. He has not been charged as an adult, but prosecutors are looking at the case to determine if that will change.
"The department is working very closely with law enforcement and will be closely reviewing our case records to ensure that all policies and procedures were followed," Department of Human Resources Secretary Ted Dallas said in a statement.
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This is the second time a preteen has been charged with murder in Prince George's County. The first time occurred in 2006.
Stay with News4 and NBCWashington.com for more information.
