Foster parents charged in death of 18-month-old who was ‘skin and bones,’ AL cops say
An 18-month-old living in foster care was “skin and bones” and not breathing when he was taken to an Alabama hospital, authorities said.
Eight months after the toddler’s death, foster parents Mason Grimes, 36, and Brooklyn Paige Posey Grimes, 31, have been charged with capital murder of a child under 15, intentional murder, felony murder and aggravated child abuse, records show.
The couple was booked in Blount County jail July 31.
“Our client and his wife have been loving foster parents to over a dozen children,” Edward Lowe, Mason Grimes’ attorney, told McClatchy News in an email. “Many in this community know the heart that they have for children. It is impossible to believe they would want to harm a child.”
He said his client denies the charges and “has faith that God’s will will be done in this legal process.”
The Marshall County Department of Human Resources placed the child in foster care with the couple in Blount County, where three other children were living at the time, Blount County officials said. The boy was 3 months old when he began living with the Grimeses, according to court documents obtained by AL.com and WVTM.
McClatchy News reached out to both county’s DHR agencies for comment Aug. 1 and did not immediately receive a response.
The child was eventually diagnosed with multiple congenital disorders, and doctors scheduled follow-up appointments for October, Blount County Sheriff Mark Moon said during an Aug. 1 news conference.
But he said no one took the boy back to the doctor.
On Nov. 22, deputies responded to a hospital after receiving a report of a child’s death. The toddler was “emaciated,” and medical staff told investigators the boy was cold to the touch when he arrived at the hospital, Moon said.
A monthslong investigation ended in a grand jury indicting the Grimes.
“I know there are some (supporters) out there that will never believe that any of this was possible,” Moon said. “But the truth of the matter is that the facts are facts, and the evidence is overwhelming.”
Grimes’ attorney said the couple has received “overwhelming support” from the community and requested that people to withhold judgment during the investigation.
“We ask the community to continue to support Mason and Paige throughout this process, knowing they are the people you have always known them to be,” Lowe said.
Blount County is about a 45-mile drive northeast from Birmingham.
This story was originally published August 2, 2024 at 11:20 AM with the headline "Foster parents charged in death of 18-month-old who was ‘skin and bones,’ AL cops say."