Police chief: Death of 9-month-old boy may have been preventable

PALM BAY, Fla. — The Palm Bay police chief said the death of a 9-month-old boy may have been preventable.

Police Chief Nelson Moya said there were previous allegations of neglect involving Takhari Williams in the six months before his death last November.

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He said gaps in the system of communication between the Department of Children and Families and the police department need to be addressed to help save lives in the future.

Palm Bay police believe Takhari died at the hands of his mother, Shanquila Beckham-Williams, 28.

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Officers said it took them months to build their case against Williams, who is now facing a charge of aggravated manslaughter.

Police learned in the course of their investigation that DCF requested a child protective team examination, but it was never completed and police were never notified.

Police said they didn’t receive the medical examiner’s report on Takhari until May of this year. The little boy died in November 2020.

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Officers said the 9-month-old boy was the victim of battered baby syndrome.

April Bryant, of Brevard County, was a friend of Takhari’s mother. For months, she cared for Takhari in her home as a member of her own family. She said now, she carries his ashes.

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“I just want justice for him,” Bryant said. “Forget his momma, because she knows what happened in that house, but help him, help him let this not happen again.”

Bryant said that after she returned Takhari to his mother, she continued to reach out to the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and Palm Bay police to check on Takhari.

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Moya said DCF was contact six times between May and November 2020 about Takhari. Here’s a timeline of those reports:

• In May of last year, DCF and Palm Bay police responded to an allegation of neglect, it was determined Takhari was not in danger at that time.
• In July, DCF responded without police. There was no answer at the door.
• DCF and police were back in September.
• On Oct. 6, DCF engaged in an action plan with Takhari’s mother, the next day she brought Takari to the hospital because he wasn’t thriving.
• On Oct. 16, an allegation of bruising was reported to DCF, and police were not notified.
• Two days later, DCF mandated a child protection team examination. It was never  completed, and police weren’t told about it. A few weeks later, Takhari was dead.

If they had been notified in more of those cases, he said, they may have been able to intervene in the case before Takhari was killed. Moya said it’s a gap in the system that needs to be addressed.

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On Nov. 15 of last year, police were called to the child’s home after his mother said Takhari fell on the floor from a sitting position and hit his head before becoming unresponsive. The medical examiner’s report revealed multiple blunt force trauma injuries and a collapsed right lung.

According to the DCF website, the agency had an open investigation involving Takhari at the time of his death.

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Last month, Palm Bay police made two arrests in the beating death of 12-year-old Noah Godleski.

Police said there was a previous DCF contact in that case too. Now, Moya’s hoping to sit down with a local representative from the agency to discuss these recent deaths.

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