GARY, Ind. — The body of a 6-year-old boy from suburban Chicago was partially charred, indicating that someone tried to burn the child’s body after he died, a coroner’s office in Indiana reported.
The body of Damari Perry, of North Chicago, was found near an abandoned house in Gary, Indiana, on Saturday, WLS-TV reported. Authorities found the boy partially naked and wrapped in a plastic trash bag, WFLD-TV reported.
According to a statement from the Lake County, Indiana, coroner’s office on Tuesday, a preliminary finding showed that Perry died from hypothermia, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Graphic content warning: Indiana officials have determined the manner & cause of death of 6-year-old #DaramiPerry of Chicago
— Audrey Conklin (@audpants) January 12, 2022
Three of his family members, including his mother, face charges related to his killing. @mikerreports https://t.co/fvi9jC3Px3 https://t.co/CM2NSKhbhJ pic.twitter.com/jpczEoCK7g
Those findings are in line with authorities in Lake County, Illinois, who said Perry was subjected to a forced cold shower by his family, causing his death, the newspaper reported.
An autopsy found scattered ecchymosis -- a discoloration of the skin caused by deep bruising and bleeding underneath -- on his right leg, WBBM-TV reported. The coroner’s office also said the boy’s internal organs were partially frozen, the television station reported.
“He was placed into a cold shower for an extended period of time, held there by family members at the direction of the mother,” Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart told WGN-TV. “We believe the mother may have been involved also, and at some point, he became unresponsive, vomited and died.”
>> Damari Perry: Mother, siblings charged with murder, hiding body after 6-year-old’s remains found
Jannie M. Perry, 38, the child’s mother, was charged with first-degree murder, concealment of a homicide and obstruction of justice, prosecutors announced during a Saturday afternoon news conference. The boy’s brother, Jeremiah R. Perry, 20, was also charged with aggravated battery, concealing a homicide and obstruction of justice. A third family member, identified only as a 17-year-old juvenile sibling, is also facing undisclosed charges, according to WLS.
Jannie Perry remained hospitalized with an undisclosed illness, the Tribune reported. Jeremiah Perry, her oldest son, had a public defender appointed to represent him, the newspaper reported. A judge ordered Jeremiah Perry held on $3 million bail and set his next court date for Feb. 1, the Daily Herald reported.
On Sunday, Lake County prosecutors said in court that on Dec. 29, 2021, Jannie Perry told family members that the child had to be punished, WLS reported. The judge also noted that Damari Perry had a disability.
>> Damari Perry: Mother, brother tried to punish child, prosecutors say
According to officials with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, Jannie Perry lost custody of her children in 2014 following a domestic violence complaint, the Tribune reported. When Damari Perry was born in late 2015, he, too, joined his six siblings in foster care, DCFS said, before Perry regained custody in 2017, according to the newspaper.
DCFS investigated a complaint involving Damari Perry in 2021, but the agency determined that it was unfounded, a department spokesperson told the Tribune on Monday.
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