Edgefield County Child’s Death in 2020 Leads to Man’s Arrest This Week
An Edgefield County child died nearly four years ago after an object in his mouth caused him to choke to death.
Yesterday, Edgefield County authorities announced a second arrest has been made in the case.
The child, who was three years old, had been left in the care of 30-year-old Caleb Jochen Carter in 2020. Carter’s relationship to the child wasn’t given.
An arrest warrant says Carter “did place or allow to be placed an unsafe mouthpiece in the child’s mouth which caused the child’s upper airway to be obstructed and also caused the child’s death.”
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division charged Carter on August 26 with two counts of Unlawfully Placing a Child at Risk or Causing Harm or Willfully Abandoning the Child.
The warrant further stated Carter “placed the child at unreasonable risk of harm affecting the child’s life, physical or mental health, or safety to wit.”
Authorities said the child also had multiple injuries to his face, eye, ear, jaw, back and chest.
The case will be prosecuted by the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
Edgefield County Child’s Death also Netted an Arrest in June
In late June this year, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division arrested 27-year-old Codi Raye Scott with two counts of Unlawfully Placing a Child at Risk in connection with the 3-year-old child’s death in Edgefield County in October, 2020.
In the arrest warrant, Scott was also said to be responsible for the child, in addition to Carter.
“Scott did unlawfully place an unreasonable risk of harm, affecting the child’s life, and physical or mental health,” according to the arrest warrant. It also made reference to the multiple injuries to the child that Carter was also accused of inflicting.
It also stated Scott “acted alone or in concert with another, placed an unsafe mouthpiece in the child’s mouth which resulted in upper airway obstruction and caused the death of the child.”
Scott was booked into the Edgefield County Detention Center and later released on bond.
Her case will also be prosecuted by the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.