Florida claimed it couldn’t say whether child was abused to death. Here’s what evidence said

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Fatal Secrets

The parents of Rashid Bryant didn’t want anyone to know about the deadly abuse absorbed by their 1-year-old son. If anything, Florida child welfare administrators have become even more secretive.

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Secrecy, beatings and lies: the hard life, needless death of 1-year-old Rashid Bryant

Mom charged with killing Rashid Bryant had three different stories on how he got hurt

Florida claimed it couldn’t say whether child was abused to death. Here’s what evidence said

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For more than a year, the Florida Department of Children and Families refused to release records on the death of Rashid Bryant, saying there had been no determination that the 1-year-old died of abuse or neglect. Facing a lawsuit from the Miami Herald and other news organizations, the department also claimed that the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office had asked DCF not to release the records because the case was still under investigation.

The records in a child death case don’t become public until abuse or neglect are determined.

Circuit Judge Barbara Areces, after reviewing the file, said what DCF was claiming wasn’t true at all, and ordered the records released. The records showed why she ruled the way she did:

▪ Less than a week after Rashid’s death, DCF had filed a petition in court, seeking custody of his siblings. The agency wrote in a sworn statement that Rashid’s death and injuries were due to child abuse.

▪ DCF’s formal investigation concluded shortly after a medical examiner’s report was released in June 2021 that allegations of medical neglect, bone fractures and death were “verified, based on the ME’s final report.”

▪ Another DCF report on Rashid’s death noted that: “A child has died due to the parents’ lack of judgment in decision-making.”

On top of all that, a representative of the state attorney’s contradicted DCF, saying there was no request to withhold the documents from the news organizations that sued to release them. Days after Rashid died, his parents were charged with medical neglect leading to great bodily harm — charges that were later changed to manslaughter and aggravated child abuse.

The child’s autopsy, released in June 2021, concluded Rashid had suffered four skull fractures and a brain bleed, resulting from “acute and chronic blunt force injuries.” The boy’s death was ruled a homicide.

This story was originally published March 20, 2022 at 7:00 AM.

Carol Marbin Miller

Miami Herald

305-206-2886

Carol Marbin Miller is the Herald’s deputy investigations editor. Carol grew up in North Miami Beach, and holds degrees from Florida State University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She has written about children, elders and people with disabilities for 25 years. Stories written by Carol have influenced public policy and spurred legislative action, including the passage of laws that reformed the state’s involuntary commitment, child welfare and juvenile justice systems.