Jessica D. Caldwell, the mother of 2-year-old Julian James-Robert Williams, who was punched or kicked to death in September 2009, has been indicted on murder charges.
Caldwell, 23, apparently fled the state when she learned she would be charged in the toddler's death. She turned herself in to police in Huntsville, Ala., on Tuesday night and is being held in jail there.
She and her boyfriend, Demetrius C. Willis, 23, were indicted by a grand jury Jan. 27. Each is charged with seven counts of murder and manslaughter. The indictment against Caldwell was made public Thursday.
Julian died in the early morning hours of Sept. 10, 2009. Caldwell had taken him on the bus from their home on E. Arlington Avenue in St. Paul to the home where Willis was staying with his mother and stepfather in the 800 block of York Avenue. Both Caldwell and Willis said Julian slept in their bed and was fussy and whiny while they had sex and watched a movie.
About 5 a.m., they noticed that the boy was not breathing and called for an ambulance. A surgeon at St. Paul Children's Hospital later told police that he removed vast quantities of blood from Julian's abdominal cavity during emergency surgery and knew then that the boy wouldn't survive. The surgeon said Julian's injuries likely came from being punched or kicked that morning.
PAT PHEIFER
