Prison Sentence for Mom Who Refrigerated Abused Baby's Body

MOUNT VERNON, NY — Deasia Bartee, the mom who refrigerated her baby's decomposing body after the 14-month-old died of abuse and neglect, was sentenced to 19 years in state prison Tuesday.

She had pleaded guilty to one count of Manslaughter in the First Degree, a class “B” Felony, in the death of Samia Yusuf.

She had originally been charged with:

• one count of Murder in the Second Degree, a class “A” Felony,
• two counts of Manslaughter in the First Degree, class “B” Felonies,
• one count of Manslaughter in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony,
• three counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, class “A” Misdemeanors

Mount Vernon police began investigating Bartee after a 911 call was received at 5:21 a.m. Aug. 5, 2016 for an unresponsive child "who had died in her sleep."

The officers responded to 210 Washington St. where they found the baby in a play pen. She was on her back with her arms rigid pointing towards the ceiling. Her left eye appeared to be swollen shut. She had no pulse and was lifeless. She was extremely cold to the touch.

“It was a gruesome discovery that shocked even our most senior officers on the job,” Commissioner Ronald Fatigate said in a statement at the time.

The baby was taken to Mount Vernon Hospital and pronounced dead on arrival. The ER doctor who examined her told the police that the child was unusually cold and stated his belief the child had been dead for some time and may have been refrigerated as she was in an advanced state of decomposition.

The child's cause of death was blunt force trauma of the body with a fracture dislocation of the lumbar spine and internal bleeding; however, she was also significantly underweight and malnourished, weighing only 14 pounds, according to the Westchester Medical Examiner.

Bartee, 27, implicated herself in the death of her child when interviewed by detectives, said Westchester County District Attorney Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr. She stated that she repeatedly struck the victim on the back with her hand.

After sentencing, Bartee was remanded into the custody of the New York State Department of Corrections.

Assistant District Attorney Doreen Lloyd and Assistant District Attorney Mary Clark-DiRusso of the Special Prosecutions Division prosecuted the case.