Teenager Charged With Fatal Father's Day Beating Of 16-Month-Old Daughter, Prosecutors Say

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — The teenaged father accused of beating his 16-month-old daughter to death on Father’s Day has been indicted on murder charges, prosecutors said.

Shaquan Taylor, 19, allegedly beat Nylah Lewis in his West 32nd Street home on June 18, then refused to call 911 when the toddler’s 17-year-old mother discovered her little girl was unconscious, according to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.

The mother, who had arrived to pick up Lewis after a two-day visit with her father, tried to take her from the apartment, but Taylor grabbed the little girl, handed her to a bystander and hit her mother repeatedly, said prosecutors.

Lewis died in Maimonides Medical Center on June 23 after five days on life support — she had suffered a linear skull fracture, brain swelling and bruising on her face and body, prosecutors said.

Lewis’ mother had cuts on her face and swelling around her eye, prosecutors said.

Taylor told detectives that the small child had fallen from her bed but the Medical Examiner’s office determined her injuries were inconsistent with his explanation, said prosecutors.

Taylor, of Coney Island, was arraigned in Brooklyn Criminal Court on Monday where he was charged on a 10-count indictment that includes murder, manslaughter and assault charges, and was held without bail, prosecutors said.

Taylor is due back in court on July 27 and faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted of murder, prosecutors said.

Taylor’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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