Community 'Shaken' Over Abuse Death Of Boy, 8: Police

ROUND LAKE BEACH, IL — A Lake County Circuit Court judge will decide Monday afternoon whether the mother of an 8-year-old boy — who appears to have died from longterm malnourishment and abuse— should remain behind bars as court proceedings move forward in the murder case.

The mother, Dominique Servant, 33, and her boyfriend, Joey L. Ruffin, 38, are each charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of child endangerment causing death in connection with the young boy's death late last week. They are scheduled to appear for a detention hearing in Lake County Circuit Court at 1:30 p.m. Monday.

The death of the young boy sparked an investigation, that led to the arrests.

"Our community is grieving," said Round Lake Beach Police Chief Ryan Rodriguez. "The tragic loss of an 8-year-old child has shaken us to our core. There are simply no words that can fully capture the heartbreak we feel as parents, neighbors, friends, and as a police department."

The father of the child called police to report his son had fallen and was injured at a home in the 1900 block of Cedar Lake Road in Round Lake Beach on Friday afternoon, Christopher Covelli, deputy chief for the Lake County Sheriff's Office, told Patch.

Police administered CPR before paramedics responded and took over life-saving measures, police said. The boy was brought to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

First responders noticed signs of bruising and malnourishment, according to a news release from the Lake County Sheriff's Office, and launched an investigation into the death. The instigation revealed what police believe to be longterm neglect and physical and mental abuse, police said.

During an initial court appearance on Sunday, prosecutors said the boy was beaten with a belt and had not been given food for days before his death, according to the Daily Herald.

“There are no conditions which justify the release of the defendant prior to the detention hearing,” Lake County Judge James Simonian said.

Authorities also interviewed the boy's 10-year-old sibling at the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center. The sibling was then admitted to a hospital for signs of abuse and malnourishment, police said. A 3-year-old sibling, who also lived at the home, was placed in the care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the Daily Herald is reporting.

An autopsy was conducted Friday night, and preliminary findings indicate signs of longterm malnourishment and abuse, police said. Final results are pending.

The investigation remains ongoing.