Markisha Jones, 19, and Gene Edwards, 22, of Bolingbrook will appear in bond court Saturday on those charges related to the death of their infant daughter, Mya G. Edwards, who was reported dead on January 8, 2014 in the 100 block of Hager Ave. Both have been charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony child endangerment, according to Barrington police.
After Mya died, her parents moved from their apartment in Barrington — adjacent to Barrington High School — to their current residence in Bolingbrook. Mya’s surviving twin was taken for medical care at the same time police and paramedics responded to the call of Mya Edwards’ death. Both girls were found following a 9-1-1 police and firefighter/paramedic response in their family’s rented apartment, which was in a single-family home on Hager Avenue. Mya’s surviving twin sister was reported by DCFS to be in a foster home in March 2014.
In early March 2014, Department of Children and Family Services officials reported in a separate investigation that Mya’s parents had neglected Mya and her surviving twin sister, who had her one-year-old birthday earlier this May, 2014. None of the existing criminal charges stemmed from the DCFS investigation. Her parents, Markisha Jones and Gene Edwards, have retained supervised visitation so far.
After a four-month investigation, the Cook County medical examiner’s office determined Mya’s death was a homicide due to malnutrition from starvation.
The news release issued by the Barrington Police Department at 6:30 p.m. today does not indicate any other details about the death or the reason for the conditions that caused Maya’s neglect and death, or the neglect of Mya’s twin sister.
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