This story was updated at 11:56 a.m. on Sept. 26, 2024.
Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story stated 21-year-old Charity Dreyer was charged in the death of her 9-month-old daughter. Dreyer has not been charged in the child's death, which Whitehall Police are continuing to investigate.
Whitehall police are investigating the death of a 9-month old girl as a possible homicide.
Whitehall Deputy Police Chief Daniel Kelso said medics were called to a home on Beechbank Road around 6:40 p.m. on Monday for an unresponsive child.
Police officers were called to the home a short time after and found the 9-month-old and a 23-month old girl with injuries. The 9-month old was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital where she later died.
Police have charged the girls’ mother, 21-year-old Charity R. Dreyer, with felony child endangering. Kelso said the charge stems from the 23-month-old’s injuries.
A criminal complaint filed in Franklin County Municipal Court alleges Dreyer caused "abuse or torture" to the 23-month old, resulting in what appeared to be a broken arm and head and neck.
Kelso expects to file more charges after an investigation into the younger girl's death.
“We still have to shore up some loose ends, and we anticipate that there will be charges forthcoming pretty soon,” Kelso said.
Dreyer was arraigned Tuesday for the child endangering charge. She also faces charges for three felony parole violations and two misdemeanors related to her vehicle.
Kelso said there were other adults and children living in the house with Dreyer, but that only the two girls who were injured were Dreyer's children. He also issued a reminder that anyone who suspects child abuse should report it.
“They don’t have to be a mandatory reporter to report these things,” Kelso said. “If you think there’s a family member or a neighbor that’s doing something that’s wrong to their child, you can prevent these situations by making a call.”
Dreyer is being held at the Franklin County Jail.
If the 9-month-old’s death is ruled a homicide, it will be the first one of the year in Whitehall.
Kelso said in the past few years, the city has typically seen one or two homicides a year.
