A Texas couple is in custody following the tragic death of their 5-year-old child, who reportedly had severe bruising on his abdomen, buttocks, and limbs.
Terry Robinson Jr., 35, has been charged with capital murder, while Destiny Culvahouse, 24, is charged with injury to a child resulting in death by omission, according to Texarkana police. Police arrived just after 2 p.m. on September 27 following a report of a child who was not breathing at an apartment located in the 3300 block of Nichols Drive.
Emergency responders quickly arrived and began performing CPR on the boy who was later named Zaydon Robinson. He was quickly taken to the hospital, but doctors declared him dead. Authorities discovered significant injuries on the child victim, suggesting possible foul play, as stated in a probable cause arrest affidavit.
Authorities brought Robinson and Culvahouse in for questioning at the police station. After being read her rights, Culvahouse informed the police that she awoke at approximately 9 a.m. and that Robinson had “disciplined” Zaydon for “stealing” before she got out of bed, as stated in the affidavit. She mentioned that Robinson stepped out of the apartment to do some grocery shopping and take care of a car payment. Culvahouse reportedly informed the police that she observed Zaydon behaving “normally” and appearing to be fine that morning. A group of children, including the boy, settled down for a nap at around 11 a.m.
At approximately 12:30 a.m., she entered Zaydon’s room to wake him and observed that he was not breathing, according to the affidavit. She dashed outside to notify Robinson, who was sitting in his car. Robinson entered and attempted to rouse Zaydon, but it was to no avail. The affidavit stated that he attempted to place the boy in a bathtub to “try and warm him up.”
Culvahouse stated she contacted 911 at 1:30 p.m., but dispatch records allegedly indicate her call came in at 2:12 p.m., almost two hours after she reported discovering Zaydon unresponsive.
Robinson reportedly told detectives during his post-Miranda interview that he woke up at 3 a.m. to find Zaydon awake and sent him back to his room before returning to sleep. Robinson mentioned that he got up at about 7 a.m. to prepare breakfast for his daughters. He woke Zaydon up at about 8 or 9 a.m.
“Terry advised that he then observed that the victim had ‘stolen’ a diaper bag, a microphone stand and two drinks sometime during the nighttime,” detectives wrote. “Terry advised that this upset him, and he had he had a talk with the victim.”
Robinson reportedly stated that he went grocery shopping, settled his car bill, and applied for a job before heading back home.
According to the affidavit, he reported being in his car outside the apartment when Culvahouse hurried out, claiming she believed Zaydon was dead. Robinson mentioned that he placed the unconscious Zaydon in the bathtub and submerged him in “lukewarm” water. After trying other lifesaving measures without success, he instructed Culvahouse to call 911. He first stated that merely “five minutes” elapsed from when he discovered Zaydon to when they contacted 911, according to police. However, detectives pointed out that significantly more time had passed, as stated in the affidavit.
Robinson first refuted the claim of assault but later confessed to striking the victim a “unknown” number of times with a belt due to frustration over the victim’s “lack of attention,” according to the affidavit.
Robinson and Culvahouse have been taken to the Bi-State Detention Center, where they are currently held. Culvahouse’s bond is set at $1 million, whereas Robinson’s bail amounts to $5 million.