Dallas County Jury Indicts Darriynn Ronnell Brown On Capital Murder In Slaying Of 4-Year-Old Cash Gernon
DALLAS (CBSDFW/AP) — A Dallas County jury has indicted Darriynn Ronnell Brown, 18, on a capital murder charge in connection to the kidnapping and alleged killing of 4-year-old Cash Gernon on May 15.
Gernon was found with multiple, fatal stab wounds in a southwest Dallas street not far from a home he was staying at with his twin brother.
Brown's attorney said he expects Brown to be found incompetent to stand trial after a mental evaluation. Dallas County prosecutors have not said whether they will seek the death penalty.
The story of the child's violent death shook the community and country leaving many asking what happened that morning. Court documents obtained by CBS 11 News help provide a timeline of the heinous crime.
5:00 AM
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Gernon was abducted from a home on Florina Parkway where he and his twin were living with an acquaintance of their father. The father, according to police, left the boys in late March. The boys' biological mother was reportedly searching for them.
According to the arrest warrant, a man matching Brown's description was seen on home surveillance video at about that time removing the child from his crib.
6:40 AM
At 6:40 a.m., a neighbor out for a morning walk sees Gernon's body lying in the street on Saddleridge Drive eight blocks away.
"The closer I get to it, I can tell it's a human because I see hands... and I see legs," said Antwainese Square, who later called 911. "To see a child covered in blood in the middle of the street? It's truly traumatizing."
Within minutes, a swarm of officers descended on the neighborhood of neat homes and well-tended lawns in the Mountain Creek area of Dallas.
7:00 AM: Dallas police begin knocking on doors
"This started about 7 in the morning," says Joe Bubel, sharing that police knocked on his door.
"They said to me 'do you have any children in your home? Small children? I said 'no, I don't...I said are you looking?' And they said 'well, we have a young boy'..."
10:48 AM: Woman calls 911
According to court documents, the father's acquaintance who had been caring for the four-year-old and his sibling called "at about 10:48 a.m., Witness... called 911 to report that a 4-year-old white male could not be located."
Neighbors at the time questioned why it took so long for someone to notice that Gernon was missing.
"Nobody came looking for this child!" questioned Toronda Alford, "This child was four! Who didn't know their child was missing during this period of time?"
FBI agents could be seen carrying bags of evidence from the woman's home on Saturday. According to court documents, she later identified Brown as the man seen on home surveillance video taking Gernon from his crib.
Saturday 10:00 PM Dallas police announce Brown's arrest
Brown was arrested and booked into the Dallas County jail -- charged with burglary and kidnapping. He was held on a $750,000 bond. His mother defended him, insisting that he had been "set up" and that he was incapable of hurting a child, adding that there was "more to the story."
Meanwhile, strangers mourn the child's loss, acknowledging that nothing will change the tragic ending. "No matter what happens, it's not going to bring that little boy back," said Bubel.