The Misery Machine - The Story of Kenisha Berry + Baby Hope

Starting point is 00:00:00 On November 29, 1998, Roy Black and his wife IMA were collecting aluminum cans in dumpsters in the southeast Texas City of Beaumont, just 28 miles west of the Louisiana border. While searching in a dumpster on Park and Florida streets next to an apartment complex, Roy made a grim discovery. Inside of a black plastic trash bag was the body of a newborn baby boy. Duck tape was placed over the baby's mouth and his arms were secured across his chest. with the same tape. The bag was littered with fecal matter, which covered the baby's backside and legs. IMA alerted the police who responded to the scene.

Starting point is 00:00:40 The little boy was dubbed Baby Hope, and it was later found that he had died from asphyxiation. Police were able to obtain a palm print from the trash bag and a fingerprint from the duct tape, but since there was no match in the automatic fingerprint identification system, Baby Hope's case soon went cold. As forward to June 6, 2003, 83-year-old Andrew Durham was taking an early morning walk down Hill of Brant Road, located in Beaumont south of the city proper. There in a roadside ditch, he spotted a baby girl.

Starting point is 00:01:11 She was still alive and covered in fire ants. The venom from hundreds of fire ant stings were causing her seizures. Now, if you've ever experienced a sting from these guys, you know even for an adult, these can be intense. But this was a little baby. so this situation could easily be fatal. This tiny baby girl required a blood transfusion and was hospitalized for nearly a month. But luckily she pulled through,

Starting point is 00:01:38 and thanks to an anonymous tip, this little girl who survived such a horrific encounter soon had a name, and so did her mother. The baby's name was Paris, and her mother, Kanisha Berry. Tisha Berry was born December 26, 1977. She was described by her family as a family, a timid and weary youngster. As a teenager, she dropped out of high school and obtained her GED,

Starting point is 00:02:01 later becoming a prison guard in the city of Dayton, located between the cities of Beaumont and Houston, Texas. Supervisors at the Dayton prison noted that she was a hard worker, but her attendance was lacking. After being a no-call, no-show on several occasions, she was fired after four months. Later, she went on to work in food service and at a daycare center where she took care of toddlers, the latter closing in 2003. On June 12, 2003, Six days after Baby Paris's near fatal discovery, Kenesha walked into the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and told the deputies that she was her mother.

Starting point is 00:02:35 She also shared with them a tip that completely changed the course of their investigation. Paris was initially wrapped in a pillowcase. After abandoning her on the side of Hillebrant Road, she threw away the pillowcase in a dumpster located at the Florida Park Apartments, the same dumpster in which Baby Hope was found five years earlier. deputies knew they had more than just an abandonment case on their hands. They had finally cracked a cold case homicide. Bobby beavers of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department brought this information to the attention of Officer John Bowles of the Beaumont Police Department.

Starting point is 00:03:09 Together, the two compared Kinesh's prints to those that were found on the trash bag and the duct tape in the Baby Hope case. The palm print on the trash bag matched Kinesh's right palm and the fingerprint on the duct tape matched Kinesh's left index finger. DNA testing of baby hope's blood and oral swabs taken from Kinesha indicated a 99.98% probability that Kinesia was the little boy's mother. On June 27, 2003, CPS worker Tracy Rodeau met with Kinesha, who had been booked on the charges related to abandoning baby Paris on the side of the road. Paris was taken into custody by CPS. However, Kinesia had a 9-year-old daughter named Jasmine, a 7-year-old daughter named Kirsten, and a 3-year-old son named Joscen. Baby Paris was fathered by a man named Leonard Carrier, and the three older surviving kids were fathered by a man named Joscan love. At the first jail meeting, Rodeau and Kinesha discussed the removal of Jasmine, Kirsten, and Jocan, and the potential for a family placement. Dough met with Kinesia in jail again on July 10, 2003, after the mother had been charged with capital homicide and the death of her son Malachi, known to authorities as Baby Hope.

Starting point is 00:04:15 Radeau asked Kinesha if her family knew anything about Malachi or other hidden pregnancies, because their knowledge would affect the point. placement of her other kids. Kanisha advised Rodeau that she knew how to hide a pregnancy and that her weight fluctuated a lot. She insisted that her family had absolutely nothing to do with baby hope or what was going on. Kinesia did not give Rado any details about the duct tape other than she acknowledged that she had duct tape lying around the house. She did not confess that she had killed Malachi, but stated that she had borrowed her grandmother's car, placed the baby whom she claimed was already inside the trash bag in the trunk and transported him to a dumpster without anybody's knowledge. She insisted that her baby was not kicking, moving, or anything of that nature when she put him in

Starting point is 00:04:59 the dumpster. Eisha testified at trial that she did not kill her baby. She knew that she was pregnant in 1998, but she did not know how far along she was. The father of the baby was a man named Nicholas Beard. Kenesha did not tell her family or anyone else about her pregnancy. She gave birth at home by herself and named the baby Malika. He appeared to be healthy when he was born, and she fed him milk from a bottle. Her other kids were with the relative at the time of his birth,

Starting point is 00:05:25 and when they returned home, she explained that she was watching a friend's baby. His nose started running the next day, and she went to the store that morning to buy more milk. When she returned from the store, he was still asleep on the bed in her bedroom. Isha laid on the couch to watch television and later checked on him because she was concerned that he had not yet awakened. When she went into the bedroom, Malachi was limp and was not moving or breathing. She realized that he was dead, but did not call for help because she was scared and did not know if it was against the law to give birth to a baby at home. According to Kinesha, she put duct tape over his arms because they were stiff and kept sticking out, and she wanted them in front of him. She also put duct tape over his mouth because it bothered her that his mouth was open.

Starting point is 00:06:08 She then left her apartment with Malachi in a bag and later placed him in a dumpster. Prosecution questioned Kinesha on cross-examination regarding her infant daughter Paris. She acknowledged that she hit her pregnancy with Paris, but avoided answering questions about whether or not she had abandoned Paris on the side of the road. While evidence of other crimes is not admissible to prove the character of a person, it may be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive. The state argued that the subsequent hidden pregnancy and abandonment of Paris showed that Kanisha was keeping the children fathered by Jocke and love and discarding the children fathered by other men, thus demonstrating her motive and her intent to kill Malika. Forensic pathologist Tommy Brown had performed the autopsy on Malachi and he estimated that he was two to five days old. Duck tape had been used to cover his mouth and to constrain his arms around his abdomen and he had been placed inside a plastic trash bag. His stomach contained a milk-like product which indicated that he was fed before his death and there was fecal matter inside the plastic trash bag.

Starting point is 00:07:09 He had patechia on the plural surfaces of his lungs which was consistent with oxygen deprivation. The combination of being duct tape and covered with a plastic trash bag was also consistent with oxygen deprivation. Brown observed no indication of an infection or sudden infant death syndrome. He determined that Malachi died from asphyxia due to smothering, and he ruled his death a homicide. Brown was of the opinion that the baby was still alive when he was placed inside the plastic trash bag and that as he died, there was a large release of fecal material. lividity of the anterior and posterior sides of the body led him to conclude that Malachi was lying on his stomach when he died, and after he was discovered, he was turned over and placed on his back for a short period of time.

Starting point is 00:07:53 The defense's expert witness, forensic pathologist Stephen Pustlenik, testified that he reviewed Brown's autopsy report, which included photographs and microscopic slides that were taken at the autopsy. He observed multiple areas of muconium aspiration in the microscopic slides of Malachi's lungs, And he criticized Brown for failing to include the assessment of the microscopic slides in his autopsy report. I'm the chief medical examiner for Fort Bend County, which means that we are responsible for certifying the cause and manner of death of people who die under suspicious, unnatural, and unlawful circumstances. Coneum is the first stool of a newborn. Mconium aspiration syndrome occurs when a newborn breathes a mixture of maconium and amniotic fluid into the lungs around the time of delivery. mconium aspiration syndrome, which can cause severe illness and death in the newborn,

Starting point is 00:08:41 occurs in about 5% to 10% of births. It typically occurs when the fetus is stressed during labor, especially when the baby is past its due date. He believed that the baby released maconium from his bowels while experiencing fetal distress prior to birth, which later caused significant pneumonia. This would explain that Malachi was not only very sick, but sick enough to die.

Starting point is 00:09:04 He also observed patechia on the surface, of Malachi's lungs, but stated this was non-specific finding and should never be used as proof of anything. He testified that the duct tape on Malachi's mouth would not necessarily cause asphyxia because most babies are nose-breaters. However, he acknowledged that the plastic trash bag could have caused exfixia. He did not think that the fecal matter inside of the plastic trash bag was indicative of the time of death because defecation could have occurred either at the time of death or after, nor did he think that Malachi was struggling in the bag when the fecal matter was released because the feces was confined to his buttocks, his lower back, and the back of his foot.

Starting point is 00:09:44 Hustle-knit could not specifically conclude what caused the death of baby Malachi. He acknowledged the possibility of homicide and asphyxia, but testified that the baby could have died naturally prior to being placed in the bag. He had two good guesses as to why the baby died. One is natural and one is homicide. He testified that it's just as likely that Malachi died. of a natural cause as it is that he died of homicide. Another expert witness for the defense, Carl Hunt, who is a medical doctor specializing in

Starting point is 00:10:12 pediatrics and neonatology, also reviewed the autopsy report in accompanying photographs. He testified that the duct tape on the baby's mouth would not have caused suffocation as young babies prefer to breathe through their noses. He believed that fecal material inside of the plastic trash bag was insignificant because the release of fecal material could have occurred at any time. He agreed that Patikia and Malachi's lungs could have developed due to oxygen deprivation, but stated that Patikia are not proof of any particular mode of death and are very common in autopsies of young babies who die in unexplained situations. Hunt could not reach a conclusion as to how or why this baby died until he spoke to Pustlnick, who informed him that he had discovered the presence of mcconium in the microscopic slides of Malachi's lungs.

Starting point is 00:10:57 After Pustle Nick told him this, Hunt concluded that Malachi died of natural causes related to birth, and mconeum aspiration syndrome. In other words, lung failure. State recalled Brown after the testimony of Pustlnick and Hunt. Brown disagreed with Pustlnick's findings of pneumonia or infection. He testified that he specifically looked at Malachi's lungs during the autopsy. He stated, quote, whenever I looked at the lungs, the alveolar spaces were open. There were a few squamous cells which comes from the amniotic fluid within the alveolar spaces. There was mconium that was described earlier, it has a yellow-brown pigment effect, so I did not realize there was any of that within the lungs. A pneumonia, you have to have neutrophils, which are white blood cells for bacterial

Starting point is 00:11:41 infection, or you have lymphocytes, which indicate a viral infection. The baby had neither of those. I cannot call this a pneumonia, end quote. Brown continued to believe that the cause of death was asphyxia due to smothering and a homicide. The state presented evidence detailing Kanish's abandonment of her infant daughter Paris nearly five years after the death of Malachi. Andrew Durham testified that he heard a baby crying as he was walking along Hill-Abrand Road in Jefferson County between 6.30 and 7 in the morning on June 6, 2003. He found Paris lying on her back in a ditch approximately 15 feet away from the road. She was unclothed and she had fire ants all over her body.

Starting point is 00:12:23 Durham alerted his wife who was a nurse and she took Paris to the hospital. Paris had extensive ant bites and her eyes were so. swollen shut. She needed a blood transfusion and experienced seizures in the hospital. Tracy Rode testified that CPS was appointed as Paris's managing conservator and that she was later placed in foster care. Rodeau reported that Paris still had scars from the ant bites on her face, arms, and stomach. Investigator Debbie Bevers testified that Kinesha first told her that she wanted Jockeen love to take her to the hospital, but he instead drove them out to Hillibrand Road and placed Paris on the ground. When Beaver's informed her that Jockeen had,

Starting point is 00:13:00 an alibi, she admitted that he was not involved. Beaver's testified, quote, her biggest concern when she was crying the first time I talked to her was that she was worried about what everybody was going to think and what everybody would say and how mad her mama was going to be at her for coming and talking to us, end quote. Rodeau testified that Kanish's two oldest kids, Jasmine and Kirsten, had been in counseling since their mother had been jailed on capital homicide. Jasmine had been diagnosed with PTSD. Rodeau testified that Jasmine had expressed fear and wondered why her mother had done this to Malachi in Paris and why she had not killed them.

Starting point is 00:13:37 The defense called Kanish's cousin, aunt and mother. They testified that Kinesia was shy and respectful growing up and a loving and caring mother to Jasmine, Kirsten and Jocelyn. They noted her behavior regarding Malachi and Paris was totally out of character. Kenisha's cousin had reported that she had previously been employed at a fast food restaurant, a prison, and a daycare facility. Kinesha's aunt and cousin confirmed that she had hidden all but one of her pregnancies from her family. They said that Kanisha's kids loved her and that it would negatively impact them if she received a death sentence. The defense presented the testimony of Dr. O'ney Fitzpatrick, a developmental psychologist who had done a social study of Kanish's backgrounds. He reported that she was shy and socially isolated growing up and was cooperative yet unmotivated at school.

Starting point is 00:14:25 She was a good worker when she was employed with the Texas Department of Korea. but eventually had to leave that job because of absenteeism. Dr. Fitzpatrick thought that Kenesia appeared to be clinically depressed, a condition that could cloud her judgment and affect her decision-making process. Kenesia expressed love for her kids and denied killing Malachi. She told Fitzpatrick that when she first became pregnant, she worried that she would disappoint her mother and grandmother because she had failed to live up to their expectations.

Starting point is 00:14:53 Fitzpatrick believed that they were mitigating circumstances in that Kenesha was under an extreme amount of pressure, and her sociocultural background did not promote reaching out to others for assistance. Defense also presented the testimony of psychiatrist Dr. Edward Griffin, who testified that Kenesha had been diagnosed with clinical depression in jail and had been placed on antidepressants. He suspected that she had been depressed for quite some time, but had never sought treatment. He testified that clinical depression could impair Kanish's judgment and decision-making process.

Starting point is 00:15:24 Kanisha denied killing Malachi, but expressed remorse for what had happened. He told Grypen that she had abandoned Paris because she could not care for her and wanted to sever her relationship with Paris's father. Grippin thought that there was a low risk of future danger because the incidents involving Malachi and Paris were so unique and that there was only a remote possibility that Kanisha would become pregnant in prison. Given those circumstances, he saw little likelihood of Kinesha being a danger to society in the future. Finally, the state called rebuttal witness Linda Amant, the former warden of a woman's prison who had been employed with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for 23 years. She testified that female prisoners had become pregnant because of male prison guards and other male staff.

Starting point is 00:16:09 She acknowledged that the only way prison staff would know that somebody is pregnant is either that somebody tells them or they're able to see that the person is pregnant. Any activity of that sort between an inmate and a member of prison staff is defined, as SA, as inmates cannot legally give consent. This is a federal law. On cross-examination by the defense, a men testified that she had encountered over 3,000 female inmates in her years of employment at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. During that time, she had been personally aware of two inmates who had become pregnant and had heard about two or three others. She acknowledged that there was an extremely low likelihood that a female inmate would become pregnant while in prison

Starting point is 00:16:51 and that it was a possibility rather than a probability that such a situation would occur. Kenesha Aranda Berry was convicted of capital homicide on February 19th, 2004, and was initially sentenced to death. Please keep in mind this only pertains to the death of Malachi and not for abandoning Paris. She was later resentenced to life in prison on May 23, 2007, and will not be eligible for possible parole until 40 years of her sentence. Kanisha was finally held accountable for abandoning Paris on November 13, 2007. She's currently being held at the Christina Melton Crane unit in Gatesville, Texas,

Starting point is 00:17:30 the same unit that houses Crystal Villanueva, who you'll remember from our previous episode on her case. After Kanish's conviction, custody of her four surviving kids were given to her great-aunt, Joyce Johnson, and her husband, Edward Johnson of Beaumont, Texas. As you'll remember from last week's episode, we covered Schuyler Richardson, who was ultimately found innocent on very similar charges. As such, we've got a lot to unpack here. Skyler was a smart, pretty cheerleader from Ohio

Starting point is 00:17:57 that grew up in a white upper middle class background who was put on trial for homicide after she buried her stillborn daughter in her family's backyard after giving birth to her in a bathroom after prom. Jury found Skyler innocent on all charges except for abuse of corpse as they felt that the state failed to meet their burden of proof, felt investigators were pushing a false narrative,

Starting point is 00:18:17 and had rendered a false confession from a scared teenager. In October of 2022, her remaining charge was sealed. However, Schuyler has been found guilty in the court of public opinion, even today. We've heard from many folks who don't believe that justice was served at all and feel that the verdict would have been very different had Schuyler not been a pretty white girl. Furthermore, we had plenty of comments stating that they felt Schuyler deserved the death penalty regardless of whether she had a stillbirth or not. Anisha grew up in Texas, a state that, a lot.

Starting point is 00:18:47 alongside its neighbor of Oklahoma, accounts for 45% of the total executions in the United States. Texas is quick to send its mothers to both death and life in prison. We've seen this previously even with women like Andrea Yates who faced the death penalty and had to fight to be placed in a mental health facility. One stark difference is that Skyler attempted to fashion together a makeshift grave for her daughter, while Kinesha threw her son in the garbage. The other being that Skyler was a first-time offender, and Kenesha already had charges pending for abandoning her daughter Paris.

Starting point is 00:19:21 And to address the elephant in the room, the fact that Kenesia abandoned Paris is the biggest difference between Kenesha Barry and Skyler Richardson. As we said earlier in this episode, evidence of other crimes is not admissible to prove the character of a person, but it may be admissible for proof of motive. That word motive is key. It would be understandable if someone theorized that if somebody was willing to throw a live baby in a ditch full of fire ants, that they might potentially be willing to put a live baby in a trash bag and then throw that bag in the dumpster. On this show, we're all about fairness. We feel like people should be punished when they do something wrong, especially to our most vulnerable. But we need to be fair across the board, or else laws are meaningless.

Starting point is 00:20:03 In Kanish's case, the state did not meet their burden of proof as to whether Malachi died of natural causes or of homicide. As such, do you think that Kinesia should have been charged with capital homicide, or do you think that, like, Skyler, She should have been charged with abuse of a corpse for discarding Little Malachi's body, and then attempted homicide for leaving Paris to die. Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.

The Misery Machine - The Story of Kenisha Berry + Baby Hope

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