Arkansas – Charges against an Emmet man were upgraded to capital murder after a 4-year-old girl died four days after being hospitalized with critical injuries, according to the Arkansas State Police.
James Richard Ivey, 33, was already in custody after being arrested in connection with the investigation. His charges were upgraded following the girl’s death at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock on Aug. 30.
Ivey had initially been facing felony charges including rape, first-degree domestic battery and first-degree terroristic threatening. Following the child’s death, the case was upgraded to capital murder.
The girl’s mother, Tiffany Edwards, 28, was also arrested and charged in connection with the child’s severe abuse and subsequent death. Edwards faces charges of capital murder, endangering the welfare of a minor, kidnapping and domestic battery.
The investigation began around 7:45 p.m. on Aug. 26, when Hempstead County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the emergency room at Southwest Regional Medical Center in Hope. Medical personnel were treating the girl after she was transported by ambulance from her home in Emmet.
According to investigators, the child suffered severe bruising, lacerations and electrical burns. The Hempstead County Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from the Arkansas State Police Criminal Investigation Division.
The child was later transferred to Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, where she remained in critical condition until her death on Sunday, Aug. 30.
The Arkansas State Police Criminal Investigation Division, Hempstead County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Marshals Service arrested Ivey on Aug. 28 following their joint investigation.
Authorities said the investigation remained active and ongoing. No additional details were available for release at the time of the announcement.