TACOMA — A 14-year-old boy died with more than 1,000 injuries from a three-hour-long beating from his mother in Washington, police said.
Denaya Young, 29, was arrested Jan. 30 on a second-degree murder charge, the Seattle Police Department said in a probable cause statement.
Young is accused of using an HDMI chord to hit her son over and over until he collapsed, police said.
She told a detective the incident began when she went downstairs in her townhome and saw her son hadn’t cleaned the kitchen, police said.
The mother and son had also fought the previous night about him not cleaning, police said.
Young told police she grabbed the chord when she saw he still hadn’t done his chores, authorities said.
“I just kept swinging the (HDMI) chord, I should have listened, but I kept saying you’re gonna stand up and do your chores and he was like mom I’m dizzy, I can’t do it, and I thought he was faking,” she told the detective.
Young hit her son all over his body until she “lost count” as he cried out for help, police said.
Then the teen stopped moving, police said, and his mom called 911 about five minutes later.
“I went too far,” Young told police, according to the document.
The boy’s stepfather was in the home during the beating along with his three younger half-siblings, police said.
The medical examiner discovered 1,172 injuries on his body, including on his head, neck, ears, torso, arms and legs.
He died from blunt force trauma, a medical examiner said in the document.
Young is in the King County Jail, and her bail is set at $3 million.
If you suspect a child has experienced, is currently experiencing, or is at risk of experiencing abuse or neglect, your first step should be to contact the appropriate agency. The Child Welfare Information Gateway has a list of state agencies you can contact. Find help specific to your area here.
For additional help, the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline has professional crisis counselors available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in over 170 languages. All calls are confidential. The hotline offers crisis intervention, information, and referrals to thousands of emergency, social service, and support resources. You can call or text 1-800-422-4453.
If you believe a child is in immediate danger, please call 911 for help.
