Sophia Mason Murder: Hayward Mother Formally Charged, Horrific Details of Abuse Revealed
HAYWARD (CBS SF) -- Hayward mother Samantha Johnson was formally charged with murder Tuesday in the killing of her daughter, Sophia Mason, whose body was found in Merced County earlier this month as shocking details emerged in the case.
Johnson's boyfriend, 34-year-old Dante Jackson was also charged; he remains at large and is the subject of a statewide manhunt.
On Tuesday, Johnson appeared in a Merced courtroom and was charged with murder and child abuse. She was appointed a public defender and will continue to be held on no bail. The case was continued for further arraignment on March 28, the district attorney's office said.
The girl's body was found on March 11 at Jackson's home in the city of Merced, two days after Hayward police detectives asked for the public's help in locating Mason, saying she was considered at-risk. Police said family members told them the girl was last seen in December. Following the discovery of the girl's body, family members said Child Protective Services had not heeded repeated warnings about the girl's mother.
The day before police found the body, the 31-year-old Johnson was arrested on murder charges after giving investigators suspicious information regarding her daughter's whereabouts. She eventually gave Hayward police enough information to have them ask Merced police to check out the home on Barclay Way.
The Merced Sun-Star cited court documents as saying Johnson told police that Jackson kept the girl in a shed outside his house and physically and sexually abused her. The report said Merced police found Sophia's body in a bathtub inside of a locked bathroom.
The Sun-Star reported Johnson told police that she had given permission to Jackson to "discipline" Sophia, with abuse becoming more severe over time. Johnson told police she did nothing to stop Jackson from abusing the child because she feared him, according to the report.
The coroner's office has not revealed the cause of the little girl's death.