TPD Credits Work Of Slain Investigator After Woman Gets Prison Time For Infant's Death

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Circuit Judge Daniel Pruet on Tuesday sentenced a Tuscaloosa woman to 40 years in prison for the death of her infant son and TPD was quick to thank the investigator who worked the case, but was later killed in the line of duty.

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LaKendra Yashekia Williams, now 29 years old, was charged in 2018 after she admitted to Tuscaloosa Police Department Investigator Dornell Cousette that she caused the multiple skull fractures and internal bleeding that lead to her eight-week-old son's death.

Williams did so because her son was being "whiny," the Tuscaloosa Police Department said.

Demarious Kamari Henry was airlifted for treatment at Children's Hospital in Birmingham before being taken off of life support nearly a year later on Feb. 11, 2019. Cousette was shot and killed in the line of duty responding to a call in an unrelated case seven months later.

Prior to his tragic and untimely death at the age of 40, Cousette was credited with building a strong case against Williams, as he worked with medical staff, case workers, the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit and Tuscaloosa County District Attorney's Office.

According to the Tuscaloosa Police Department, Henry's father had called 911 in a panic on the morning of March 28, 2018, after his son — who usually cried and fussed when the water was filling the sink for a bath — was silent and appeared sleepy.

Williams reportedly told Cousette that she had dropped the baby in the kitchen, before going on to say she may have elbowed him in her sleep. Still, Cousette was a widely regarded as a skilled interviewer and was able to get a confession from the woman that was then used in the criminal case against her.

"We think Investigator Cousette would have been happy to know justice had been served for Demarious -- and for the first-time father who lost his son so young," TPD said in a post on Wednesday. "Cousette worked some tough cases, involving some of the most vulnerable victims we come across. His impact will always be remembered."

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