A couple have been charged with murder after a four-year-old girl died in a scalding bath in what a medical expert called the 'worst child death case' of his career. Gabrielle Barrett's body was burned so badly her big toe fell off and police found melted skin in the drain, according to a court document.
The four-year-old died on New Year's Day with multiple injuries, including severe burns on her limbs after she was in a bath with hot water. Gabrielle's mother Candice Diaz, 24, and her boyfriend Brad Fields, 28, were charged with murder, torture, and child abuse and both denied bail.
The couple, from Michigan, were arrested seven days later in Georgia after police tracked them down – with the dramatic arrest caught on body worn cameras. The local police department said both parents have a history of severe mental illness.
In their report, Diaz claimed that Gabrielle had run her own bath, which had been the cause of her burns, but that she didn't take her child to a doctor or to hospital. The document also stated that Gabrielle had burns all over her body and bruising to her entire body.
Diaz said she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, according to the report. Fields said he was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, social anxiety, agoraphobia, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Gabrielle's father, Kyle Barrett, said he had no knowledge of what had happened in the house. He last saw his daughter in September before turning himself into police on unrelated charges. He was released from prison on January 3, two days after his daughter's death.
