US boy, 12, charged with murder in baseball-bat beating of toddler

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A 12-year-old boy beat a toddler to death with a baseball bat because she was crying while he was trying to watch TV, authorities said. The boy, who was not identified, was arrested Saturday on first-degree murder charges, Lauderhill police spokesman Lt. Mike Cochran said. He was arraigned in juvenile court Sunday and remained in custody, but it was not clear if he had an attorney or if anyone else would be charged in the girl's death. Cochran said the boy confessed to authorities that he was home alone Friday baby-sitting a 10-year-old and the 17-month-old girl and became angry when the toddler began to cry. The relationship between the three was not clear. At some point, an adult called emergency services. The girl, Shaloh Joseph, was rushed to a hospital where she was pronounced dead of blunt force trauma to the head, Cochran said.