Joliet Baby Cherish Freeman Dies From Last Week's Beating: Cops

JOLIET, IL - Cherish Freeman, an 8-month-old baby from Joliet who was in grave condition when she was airlifted to an Oak Lawn hospital last week, died on Christmas Eve, according to the Joliet Police Department. On Tuesday morning, Deputy Chief of Police Edgar Gregory told Joliet Patch that his department learned the baby died on Sunday night, shortly after 10 p.m. Joliet Police have accused the baby's mother, 24-year-old mother, Shanquilla Garvey, of inflicting a severe beating upon her child, a beating so severe the child has succumbed to her injuries, police said.

Gregory told Patch it will be up to the Will County State's Attorney's Office to determine whether to upgrade Garvey's pending criminal charges.

Records at the Will County Courthouse show that the child's mother, Garvey, was involved a child support case against Justin R. Freeman of Bellwood, Illinois. According to court documents, Cherish Freeman was born in late March. Then in late July, Garvey brought a civil lawsuit against the child's father over child support payments. This fall, Freeman, the child's father, filed a petition with the court seeking to reduce his child support payments.

Court documents indicate that Garvey and Freeman didn't show up in court for hearings on the matter of child support that were scheduled in September and October.

As for the child's mother, Shanquilla Garvey was taken into custody last Wednesday when she was charged with three counts of aggravated battery of a child causing permanent disabilities.

RELATED: Bond Denied For Mother Accused Of Beating Child

According to Joliet police, Garvey beat her 8-month-old baby inside of the Bel-Air Motel on Plainfield Road where Garvey had been living with three of her children since October.

Until now, Garvey's interaction with the Will County criminal justice system was relatively minor. In 2011 and 2012, she faced misdemeanor crimes of theft and stealing checks. Before moving to Joliet, Garvey was living in Bolingbrook, court records show.

Patch will bring you more information about this developing story as more details are known.

Mugshot via Will County Sheriff's Department