The Misery Machine - The Story of Rica Rountree

Episode Date: January 31, 2023

This week, Yergy and Drewby discuss the case of 8 year old Rica Rountree, a 3rd grader from Normal, Illinois, who was failed repeatedly by CPS, and ultimately lost her life at the hands of her father's live in girlfriend, Cindy Baker.  Support Our Patreon For More Unreleased Content: https://www.patreon.com/themiserymachine PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/themiserymachine Join Our Facebook Group to Request a Topic: https://t.co/DeSZIIMgXs?amp=1 Instagram: miserymachinepodcast Twitter: misery_podcast Discord: https://discord.gg/kCCzjZM #themiserymachine #podcast #truecrime Source Material: https://newschannel20.com/news/project-illinois/disturbing-video-shows-abuse-of-rica-rountree https://www.wglt.org/news/2020-02-06/rica-rountrees-father-gets-8-years-after-guilty-plea https://www.missinginillinois.org/post/rica-jae-rountree-age-8-january-26-2019-bloomington-mclean-county-illinois https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2021-11-30/sister-gets-probation-for-harassing-a-witness-connected-to-rica-rountree-murder-trial https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2021-09-21/killers-sister-convicted-of-witness-harassment-in-rica-rountree-case https://www.facebook.com/groups/justice4ricajae https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/local-news/cynthia-bakers-sentencing-date-vacated-as-rica-rountrees-mother-rallies-with-protestors/ https://people.com/crime/cynthia-baker-convicted-murder-abuse-death-stepdaughter-rica-roundtree/ https://npr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com/legacy/sites/wglt/files/201910/roundtree_timeline_officihttps://www.wglt.org/show/wglts-sound-ideas/2019-10-08/failing-rica-b-n-girls-death-exposes-holes-in-states-child-protection-systemal_-_updated_october_2019.pdf https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal,_Illinois https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/peritonitis#:~:text=Peritonitis%20is%20a%20redness%20and%20swelling%20(inflammation)%20of%20the%20lining,seek%20medical%20care%20right%20away https://www.spreaker.com/user/sufferthelittlechildrenpod/73-rica-rountree-part-1?fbclid=IwAR063oeuKxWiRZJeLYs_RSQlSXJ3MjEjhTEMQ4EAk3H7yRAA7BjwZD5ct_U https://www.spreaker.com/user/sufferthelittlechildrenpod/74-rica-rountree-part-2?fbclid=IwAR0Fhttps://www.spreaker.com/user/sufferthelittlechildrenpod/75-rica-rountree-part-3?fbclid=IwAR0Hlb5K9cqbC6KmXgD8W0hZH4WYFWGwvxrFiPIUrT-xOKQSiDgtW6WJKnwQM-VI77N0EivgP3LhycoJhIOYlSUd74I31MXhT90LNY_mCKjXg_7cUI https://www.facebook.com/asimmons78 https://www.mcleancountyil.gov/756/Staff https://labyrinthmadegoods.com/collections/candles https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOVK3oGYxqg&ab_channel=WMBDNews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCMWTaZNLks&ab_channel=WMBDNews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pSswglBfnU&ab_channel=WMBDNews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnL0YzAAAGA&ab_channel=heraldandreview

Rika J. Roundtree was born at 102 p.m. on April 16th, 2010, St. Joseph's Hospital in Bloomington, Illinois. The daughter of Richard James Roundtree and Antoinetta and Garnetta Beasley, now Simmons, she was described as a beautiful, bubbly, and independent young girl. Rika was the youngest of five siblings, and the only girl. As such, she enjoyed playing with, and teasing her older brothers. Rika loved dolls, and she enjoyed going to yard. sales to buy strollers, car seats, bottles, and even clothes for them. She'd even request that her mother buy diapers for them at the store. Riga had a huge heart. Her dolls were her babies,

and she treated them as such. However, Rika was also a little girl that needed the same love and protection that she gave her dolls. Many of the events we're about to discuss can be found on the state of Illinois' DCFS timeline, which will have linked for you in the description. Now, on June 19th, 2014, DCFS allegedly got involved with the family after one of Rika's older brothers was sent to a psychiatric hospital after an altercation with Anne and another sibling, where the brother claimed to have been choked and thrown through a screen door. This was on the official DCFS timeline, but however, Anne disputes that this ever happened. Anne claimed that DCFS became involved after the brother was seen outside holding cans, which was Richard's way of punishing the king. Now, I don't know if you're going to be able to see me fully in frame for this, but what do you do is he'd have them hold some canned vegetables or meat or whatever it was, and they'd

have to go and hold them out at their sides until their arms got tired and they couldn't drop them. Three months later, on September 20th, DCFS was involved yet again after Anne and James were found physically fighting in front of the kids. Both cases were ultimately closed as on On October 21st to 2015, DCFS was called to the home yet again after complaints surfaced regarding the parents putting their hands on one another in front of the kids. This time, it was Richard who was arrested and charged with DV, but his charges were later dropped. And just like the first two incidents, DCFS closed the case as unfounded. Rika's parents split up in 2015 and later divorced. During this time, Anne's alcohol, spiraled out of control.

In December, the mother was cited for driving with a suspended license after running a stop sign. A few days later, she was involved in a head-on collision after driving on the wrong side of the road. The mother of five was intoxicated at the time and was charged with aggravated DUI. On the 18th of that same month, Anne began receiving emergency cash assistance from Norman Funds, which is a program aimed at at-risk families. It was designed to help families obtain housing and essentials so that parents, parents would be able to keep their kids in their care. In June of 2016, DCFS became involved once again

after they received a call that Anne had instigated a fight between one of her sons and a neighbor's child. But just like multiple times in the past, DCFS again closed the case as unfounded. On April 13, 2016, DCFS received a report alleging that Rika's brother, who was a minor, essayed another child in another state.

Now, although this doesn't necessarily pertain to Rika, it is important to note when giving a full timeline of events surrounding DCFS involvement. Anne recently had lost her job at a financial institution. In order to make ends meet for her kids, she began selling drugs. On September 29, two undercover agents purchased cocaine from Anne's boyfriend, Deonte Harper, while Rika and her stepbrother were in the home. This resulted in the two adults being arrested on various drug charges, for which Anne received a 68-day jail sentence, and for her boyfriend, six years in prison. Rika was sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend, Cynthia, Cindy, Marie Baker, and her three kids.

According to Anne, Richard had been seen Cindy on the side throughout their entire eight-year relationship. Rika's brother, Charles, initially went to live with Richard and Cindy, but was ultimately sent to live with family of Minnesota. Now, according to Anne, DCFS visited her home again in 2016, after her son allegedly threatened to take his own life. She believes that Cindy was the one making those calls to DCFS. In 2017, after Anne was released on probation and regained visitation rights, Rika began raising concerns about Cindy. Anne stated that Rika was visibly fearful of the woman. Additionally, Rika claimed that Cindy was whipping her with a belt.

Her father Richard allegedly was in on this too, forcing Rika to stand for long periods of time while holding hands as punishments. On July 23rd, Anne contacted the police, and while DCFS investigated, Rika got to stay with her mother. So for a moment, she was safe. That was until DCFS determined that Rika's claims were unfounded. so she was returned to the care of her father and his girlfriend. By now, Richard had obtained full custody of Rika by means of their divorce ruling.

According to Anne, this is when Rika's behavior started to change. Quote, she was different. She was more reserved. She was really cautious about a lot of stuff, whereas before, she was carefree, end quote. After DCFS failed both Rika and her mother, and Richard began to disallow visitation, Anne's mental state, understandably, began to crime.

In the fall of 2017, she was charged with battery and forgery. On April 20th, 2018, the mother decided to show up at her daughter's school to visit with her. Now, although she didn't know it yet, this would be the last time that she would see Rika in person. Anne was shocked to see her daughter with a split lip, black eye, a broken tooth, new and old scars on her neck, a gash over her eye, and her hair cut so short it was down to her scalp. Additionally, Rika told her teacher that she was scared to go home. Again, Anne filed a complaint. And when DCFS investigated, Rika explained away her injuries as clumsy accidents at home,

which included hitting herself in the eye on the medicine cabinet and falling into a drawer in the bedroom. The little girl denied that anyone was hurting her and claimed that she wasn't fearful of anyone in the home. DCFS closed their case a single. second time in June of 2018, yet again, citing Anne's complaints as unfounded. According to Anne, in October of 2018, her ex-husband made it clear that he was done with his daughter. The mother stated, quote, he was telling me I needed to find a night and shining

armor to save Rika because he didn't want nothing to do with her. He didn't want to pay child support. He didn't want visits. He didn't want to be her father. He just wanted her to be adopted out so they didn't have any obligation to her, end quote. Around the same time, things only got worse for Rika, who was now a third grader. Staff at Rika School, Fox Creek Elementary in Bloomington, had provided the little girl with a winter coat as she had been showing up to school without one. Now, for those not in the states, Illinois, and many of the states in the Rust Belt can get pretty chilly in the late fall into the winter.

Now, you would think that Richard and Cindy would have been very thankful for this donation, but you'd be wrong. Instead, this kind gesture sparked an irate response from Cindy. In fact, she barged into the school, accusing staff of favoring Rika over her own daughter, who was a kindergartner at the same school, and who, keep in mind, already had a winter coat of her own. After the coat incident, Rika missed two days of school

and later showed up on December 10th with two black eyes. As such, the school staff contacted DCFS to investigate. Rika, who no doubt was too scared to tell the truth, once again, told investigators that the injuries were accidental and that she had tripped over some toys and crashed into the toy box. She also claimed that she missed school because she was sick. You'd think the DCFS wouldn't just take this at face value given the family's history, but they did. In fact, they took no action when Richard and Cindy refused to take Rika to the hospital for x-rays. The little girl remained in the home, and for the third time in 16 months, a DCFS investigation of both Richard and Cindy determined that the claims of harm done to Rika were completely unfounded. After the school's intervention over Rika's black eyes, Cindy pulled her daughter and Rika from Fox Creek and enrolled them at Prairieland Elementary School in Normal, about a 20-minute drive north, which coincided with the family's move to 407 Stanhope Lane,

in normal Illinois. The following day, DCFS received a report alleging an adequate shelter and supervision with regards to Rika's 12-year-old brother, who had been living with a relative out of state, but by now had been sent back to live with Anne, who at this point was homeless and in need of drug treatment. On January 11th of 2019, DCFS appointed a temporary guardian for her son after he was taken into custody. This did not bode well for Anne as she continued with her custody fight for Rika.

A judge determined that she was not making enough proof. progress on the terms of her probation stemming from her aggravated DUI charge. She was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for not completing her probation and for her separate forgery case. According to her judge, her efforts to get back on track were, quote, too little, too late, end quote. Unfortunately, it was also too little, too late for Rika. On January 25th, 2019, Rika was taken by ambulance to advocate Bromon Hospital after she became unresponsive after several days of stomach pain. She had a large bruise on her abdomen and was ultimately transferred to OSF St. Francis Hospital in Peoria. Rika went into surgery for her internal injuries,

but sadly, she died on the operating table the following day. Rika Roundtreeka was just eight years old. Anne found out about her daughter's death in probably one of the worst ways a parent could. Less than three weeks into her prison term, she was called in the chaplain's office where the news was broken to her over the phone. That same night, a CPS investigator met with Richard and Cindy to discuss Rika's injuries. And of course, they both denied causing any harm to the little girl. When interviewed separately, Cindy told investigators that in the days leading up to Rika's death, she had vomited onto her dinner plate, had trouble seeing, and had almost fallen down the stairs. However, she had not sought medical attention as she claimed Rika

often faked being sick for attention. Dr. Matthew Fox, who performed Rika's autopsy, started off by counting the scars on her body. Rika had 67 marks from head to toe, but it was the trauma to her abdomen that killed her. Rika died from parotinitis, caused her. by blunt force injury to her abdomen, which was filled with blood. According to an article from John Hopkins medicine, parotinitis is an inflammation of the lining of your stomach. It is often caused by an infection from a hole in the bowel or a burst appendix. You have to seek medical care right away as IV antibiotics are needed to treat the infection.

If not treated immediately, peritonitis can be deadly. In the wake of Rika's death, DCFS released the following statement, quote, DCFS is deeply saddened by the loss of Rika Roundtree. During her time with her father, DCFS conducted multiple investigations into allegations of abuse and found these allegations to be unfounded. There is currently a pending investigation into this death, and we are committed to understanding exactly what happened in this case

and being fully transparent with the public. DCFS is working closely with the new administration to review our practices, policies, and procedures in order to fully live up to our mission to protect vulnerable children in Illinois, end quote. Richard and Cindy did not have a funeral service for Rika. The little girl does not even have a proper obituary. After her body was released by the medical examiner, Rika was sent to a funeral home in Galesburg to be cremated right away. However, before the final act could take place,

a second and more thorough autopsy was performed. Richard and Cindy were quick to violate a no-contact order that had been put in police by DCFS on January 31st, stating that the parents were to have no contact with the surviving kids living in their home. It is thought that they were possibly trying to make sure that everyone was on the same page and telling the same story. Four other kids lived in their home, which included Cindy's 17-year-old son, her 15-year-old daughter, her 6-year-old daughter, and Rika's one-year-old sister. All were eventually removed from the home. Even though charges hadn't been filed yet, the two quickly

lawyered up. During the three-month investigation that followed, investigators discovered cell phone videos documenting Cindy's ongoing mistreatment of Rika. One showed Cindy dragging Rika by her neck into a bedroom to be punished. Another showed the girl naked, shivering, and soaking wet. She had been forced to hold cans, Richard's punishment of choice. When her arms went limp, Cindy slapped her, on both sides of the face, saying, do I need to put a collar on you before wrapping her hands around the little girl's neck? And in yet another video, Cindy knees Rika in the back before

slamming her head against the wall. At times, the other kids in the house would laugh and taunt the little girl as Rika was essentially being made into a punching bag for the family's enjoyment, with Cindy's teenage daughter being the main culprit. And who was standing by, filming and just watching his young daughter take this type of punishment, Richard Roundtree. In April of 2019, 41-year-old Cindy Baker was charged with three counts of homicide, one count of aggravated domestic battery, and one count of domestic battery of a minor in connection with Rika's death. Soon, she was hit with several additional charges stemming from the torture that was captured on film. Cindy was held on a $1 million bail in the McLean County Jail.

She was accused of kicking Rika in the stomach, causing internal injuries that slowly killed her. However, this was not the first time that Cindy had run-ins with DCFS. In 2002, she was found to have caused injuries to a stepchild and again in 2012 to her own daughter. So if this was the case, why were they so quick to label, all three complaints as unfounded. Unfounded. Unfounded. When it came to poor Rika. In fact, Rika was one of a hundred and twenty-three children who had contact with Illinois DCFS from July 1st, 2018 to June 30th, 2019, died within 12 months of that contact. Additionally, the state of Illinois has the lowest foster care entry rate of any state in the country. In Rika's case,

the key question is why authorities in 2016 sent the little girl to live with her father and his girlfriend, especially given Cindy's prior track record with the agency. This further begs the question. Had police not found the videos of Rika being tortured on Cindy's phone, would she ever have been charged at all? Cindy's trial was due to start in October of 2019, but it was pushed back to November due to a theory that Rika could have been injured in an auto-way. accident in Chicago in the weeks prior. However, when Cindy finally went to trial, testimony from her own kids sealed her face. Her six-year-old daughter went into great detail as to how she had seen

her mother kick Rika in the stomach on numerous occasions, in addition to whipping her with the belt. She said that her mother would laugh at Rika as a little girl cried in pain. Later, Cindy's 17-year-old son took the stand and told the court that Rika often complained of being hungry and wasn't allowed to do the same things that the other kids were. Forensic pathologist Dr. Scott Denton, who performed Rika's second autopsy, also testified. He shared with the court that the little girl's body was a literal crime scene. Additionally, pediatric surgeon Charles Apprahamean took the stand and talked about the day in January that he operated on Rika trying in vain saved the little girl's life.

She was dying, and in his opinion, her mortal wounds had occurred three to five days prior. The surgeon also claimed that he had only seen these types of injuries in the cases of blunt force abdominal trauma. He said when Rika ultimately passed away, Richard seemed confused, distraught, visibly sad, but Cindy was remarkably calm and quiet. Rika's third grade teacher described her as a go-getter, but over a period of months that enthusiasm faded. She would wear the same five oversized outfits over and over. She remarked how Rika had dark spots on her stomach

and that she walked like an 80-year-old woman. Additionally, graphic text messages between Cindy and Richard were shared in court outlining some of the mistreatments that the little girl endured, as well as the videos of her torture that were found on Cindy's phone, one of which lasted over 23 minutes. In one text message between the two, Cindy describes one of Rika's last days on this earth, where she spent the entire day crying.

On November 19, 2019, Cindy was found guilty of first-degree homicide, first-degree battery, endangering the life of a minor, and three counts of domestic battery. It's time for it to be over. I was ready. work to be done with. I'm very happy that they went with the natural life. I'm very happy that he

denied all the motions today. She is currently serving life without the possibility of parole at the Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln, Illinois. Additionally, Cindy's sister, Victoria Baker, was charged with harassing Richard Roundtree. Victoria acted as a courier, delivering a letter from Cindy ahead of his anticipated testimony in her trial. In the letter, Cindy asked Richard to take full blame for everything. She was later sentenced to 30 months probation. In February of 2020, Richard Roundtree pled guilty to charges of child endangerment and was sentenced to eight years in prison at the Shawnee Correctional Center in Vienna, Illinois.

In an emotional victim impact statement read in court, Anne told her ex-husband that she has forgiven him, but she did not agree with the eight-year sentence. She said, and I quote, whatever the sentence is, it will never be enough. Rika was eight years old, and you are her dad. You were supposed to be protecting her from the pain that you brought to her. I feel like you deserve to die in prison, end quote.

In response, Richard asked his public defender to read his brief statement directed at his ex-wife. It read, protected her better, and I'm sorry. Although Rika never had the funeral that she deserved, in January of 2020, dozens of people gathered in front of 407 Stanhope Lane to pay their respects. She was a free spirit, she was smart.

One year, Rika Roundtree was killed from a deadly blow to her stomach. On Sunday, her mom remembers her as an amazing child. She didn't take no for an answer. If she wanted to do it, she did do it. She never had any limitations. She tried and she successfully succeeded in everything she wanted to do. Hundreds of balloons in Rika's favorite color were sent up into the sky just for her. I just thought about, you know, my daughter receiving all of those balloons up in heaven.

I believe she is up there and don't know what to do with all those balloons at all. So she's probably popping a couple of them and drawn on a couple. Many members of the guardians of children were there to show their support, an organization that helps kids that have been abused. We try to give them their innocence back, really, that was taken away by somebody else. It's all about the kids, so here we are. Antoinetta says she couldn't believe the amount of people that showed up, all to honor her daughter. I would think a couple of people would come out. It's cold, but to see all the people come out and it was just, it was just, it was just, it was, you.

It was amazing. On April 17th, 2021, Anne and her community honored Rika with a day of play to celebrate what would have been her 11th birthday the day prior. Family and friends enjoyed music, games, and face painting in the park, all things that Rika would have loved. Her death was horrible. Everybody knows all about that, but Rika liked to have fun. She had so many years of just greatness left in her, so I just want to do this to just be open. and so happiness.

She says she hopes to make this an annual event and bring more children in the community together for a day of fun. Now you would think that after everything, this poor little girl endured, she'd have some semblance of justice, right? Well, on October 6, 2022, Richard Roundtree was released from the Illinois Department of Corrections and placed on parole.

He served just two and a half years of his eight-year sentence. Anne found this information out via email, which he shared in the Facebook group, Justice Farrika Jay, where she is a contributor, and to this day, makes it her mission to hold DCFS accountable.