BLOUNT COUNTY, Ala. (WIAT) — Two people have been arrested and charged with capital murder and child abuse following the death of a child in Blount County earlier last week.
On Wednesday, Mason and Brooklyn Grimes were both arrested and charged with capital murder, felony murder, intentional murder and child abuse. They had previously been indicted on July 24 on the charge.
According to court documents, the Grimeses are charged with intentionally killing an 18-month-old child they were fostering, as well as "torture, willfully abuse, cruelly beat or otherwise willfully maltreat" of the child.
The documents states that the victim was placed in their care on August 5, 2022. On September 25, 2023, the child was taken to Children's of Alabama, where they were diagnosed with several congenital disorders. The child was scheduled for a follow-up appointment on October 20, 2023, but the Grimeses did not take the child to the doctor or answer calls about the appointment.
On November 22, 2023, the victim was taken to St. Vincent's after reportedly having stopped breathing. Upon inspection, it was revealed the child had lost a third of his body weight since his last appointment and appeared "emaciated, asystolic and cool to the touch."
No other details regarding the case have been released.
Mason and Brooklyn Grimes are being held at the Blount County Correctional Facility on no bond.
The case remains under investigation.