Man charged with murdering girlfriend’s daughter with Down syndrome because she interrupted him
Suspect Adam Hughes
April 20, 2019
- The Case of Kylie Willis, 4
- Suspects Adam Hughes & Corrine Blake
Rancho Cucamonga, CA — A 4-year-old girl with Down syndrome was reportedly killed by her mother’s boyfriend, according to sheriff’s officials.
Adam Hughes, 24, was babysitting his girlfriend’s children at their home in Rancho Cucamonga, California, when the alleged incident took place, said a news release from the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department. One of the children, Kylie Willis, had Down syndrome, the release noted.
At some point on Tuesday, March 26, Hughes allegedly assaulted Kylie because she “angered Hughes by interrupting him,” the news release said. He then put her to bed.
But, several hours later, he noticed Kylie was not responsive and had “blue fingers and lips,” said the department, prompting Hughes to call his girlfriend, Corrine Blake.
At around 7:56 p.m., he called 911, and paramedics took Kylie to a nearby hospital for treatment before she was airlifted to another medical center for “severe head trauma,” the sheriff’s department said.
After she spent several days on life support, Kylie was pronounced dead on March 29 by the alleged attack, the news release stated.
Two days before her death, both Hughes and Blake were arrested on child abuse charges, but Hughes was later charged with murder after the girl died.
The criminal complaint had stated Hughes was accused of “unlawfully … having care and custody of Jane Doe, a child under the age of 8 years, assault that child by means of force that to a reasonable person would be likely to produce bodily injury, resulting in the child becoming comatose due to brain injury and suffering paralysis of a permanent nature.”
Meanwhile, Blake, “under circumstances and conditions likely to produce great bodily harm and death, willfully caused and permitted a child to suffer,” said court documents.
No additional information was released by the department, which added that several agencies are investigating.
