'Not all that serious': 9-day-old baby burned, beaten and shaken to death by parents who tried downplaying her injuries

A Virginia pistillate pleaded blameworthy aft her girl died astatine conscionable 9 days aged with burns and breached bones passim her assemblage that the caller ma deemed "were not each that serious," according to authorities.

Z'ibreyea S. Parker, 24, entered a blameworthy plea to child abuse with superior wounded for the decease of her girl I'ijayah Johnson, tribunal records show. The child's father, Hilary Johnson II, 22, pleaded blameworthy to second-degree execution earlier this month.

According to the Norfolk Police Department, officers were called to the Children's Hospital of the Kings Daughters astir 1:15 p.m. May 4, 2024, for a kid maltreatment investigation. Cops aboriginal learned the miss showed up unresponsive to the infirmary "showing signs of abuse." Doctors pronounced the miss dead.

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Two days later, the aesculapian examiner ruled the decease a homicide and Parker and Johnson were charged with second-degree execution and kid abuse. As portion of the plea agreement, prosecutors dropped the execution complaint against Parker.

Local CBS affiliate WTKR, citing tribunal documents, reported the miss had "severe burns connected some feet arsenic good arsenic splash burns connected different areas of her body." She besides reportedly had breached ribs and breached clavicle, bruises connected her caput and showed signs that she was shaken. Despite each the heinous injuries to her child, Parker claimed the injuries "were not each that serious."

Investigators besides discovered the parents and kid were stateless and had been surviving successful a structure nether a highway.

Johnson's father, Hilary Johnson Sr. said helium expressed concerns to the infirmary astir the fittingness of his lad and Parker to beryllium capable to instrumentality attraction of I'ijayah aft she was born.

More from Law&Crime: Parents brought their 2-month-old babe to the infirmary with a fractured skull, breached femur: Police

"I said I feared for the girl's life," helium said. "What successful the satellite other americium I expected to do? Now, I got to hide my granddaughter due to the fact that cipher listened."

In different interrogation with section NBC affiliate WAVY pursuing the girl's death, the elder Johnson said the caller parents struggled with their intelligence health.

"They was agleam kids that I don't cognize what successful the satellite snapped into them to unrecorded the mode they were living," helium said. "I prayed to myself earlier [I'ijayah] came present and I said, 'Lord, delight fto her maternal instincts footwear successful that she wants to support that baby, that she don't privation to unrecorded the mode she was living, that she wants much for her and her child.'"

Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, wherever the miss was born, told WTKR that it has polices to "ensure that suspicions of kid maltreatment oregon neglect and different reportable concerns are investigated successful accordance with the law."

The younger Johnson and Parker are slated to beryllium sentenced connected Oct. 24 and Oct. 31, respectively.