'Absolutely horrific.' Canton detective describes home where baby starved to death

CANTON ‒ An 11-month-old Canton baby who starved to death lived in "absolutely appalling conditions" with a brother who was nearly 2 years old, a police detective said Wednesday in Canton Municipal Court.

Detective Kevin Sedares also told Judge Kristen D. Guardado that what happened to the late Royale Rush was the "most egregious treatment of a child I had ever seen."

The detective said that after arriving on June 25 at Cleveland Clinic Mercy Hospital as part of his investigation of the death, he learned that the infant was extremely emaciated. He weighed 10.3 pounds.

"When I saw the baby, it reminded me of pictures I had seen of starving kids in Ethiopia in magazines. It was absolutely horrific," he said during a preliminary hearing for the boy's father, Eric W. Rush.

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Rush, 26, is charged with two counts each of domestic violence, endangering children and permitting child abuse in connection with his son's death. He is also charged with having weapons under disability.

Canton detective describes the home where child starved to death

Under questioning from Kate Lukosavich, the city's domestic violence prosecutor, Sedares described conditions in the townhouse on 10th Street NE where Rush and codefendant Tyasia R. Singleton, 30, the baby's mother, lived with the children.

"There was no baby formula. Every bit of food in that house, every bit of food, could be placed in a milk crate. The refrigerator was almost completely bare," the detective said. He said that while there was no infant formula, the parents ate.

He found an empty can of baby formula at the bottom of a trash can. The parents told him that they hadn't had baby formula in a week. There were no infant diapers.

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"The kids' room was completely bare. Where the 2-year-old was found ... there was a mattress on the floor and an empty bed frame. That room just reeked of spoiled milk, urine and body odor," Sedares said. "There were several fly strips on the wall that were completely full of flies."

In the room where the baby was found, officers found only an Xbox console on the floor and a playpen with no bottom. There were a couple of blankets that were soaked with bodily fluids and spoiled milk, he said.

A baby bottle, half full, contained what the parents described as a mixture of rice, milk and water, Sedares said.

"That's the same bottle that they had made at 6 o'clock Monday night, left that bottle out for ... 14 hours, and tried to feed that same bottle to the baby the next morning," he said. "In my 32 years of being a cop, that is the most egregious treatment of a child I had ever seen."

He said Rush said the baby didn't eat. The father's explanation was, "If God wanted him to eat, he would have eaten," Sedares said.

"He admitted that the baby would throw his milk up, which isn't surprising, seeing how they gave him spoiled milk," Sedares said.

The detective said Rush didn't hold the boy while feeding him, but propped up the bottle and went to play video games. He said the father's biggest concern on June 25 was how long the police investigation would take, because he wanted to return to playing video games online.

"He showed absolutely no emotion about his infant," Sedares said.

Child had tested positive for fentanyl at birth

Sedares said the child's last medical appointment was in September at the Margaret B. Shipley Child Health Clinic. He said Children Services of Stark County Job & Family Services had a case on Singleton, but closed it in April. He said Rush was not supposed to be with Royale.

Under questioning from public defender David S. Belfiglio, Sedares said Children Services had been involved with Royale from birth because he tested positive for fentanyl.

Belfiglio noted that Children Services ended its case in April, but the baby died in June.

Sedares said that is an issue he will take up with the agency. He said medical personnel had tried to contact the family.

"They never contacted law enforcement or (Children Services) to follow up on that," Sedares said. "A lot of people dropped the ball on this case."

Belfiglio noted that Sedares had not reviewed the baby's health records to determine whether he had medical conditions.

"I know he wasn't fed," Sedares said. "I'm a parent. I'm a human being. That kid starved.

"Mom and Dad both admitted that they knew something was wrong. They weren't feeding the child. They said they hoped that the kid would get better on its own."

He said Rush and Singleton did not seek available help because they knew that if they did, questions would be asked, and there would have been consequences.

Sedares said the other boy in the home, who is nearly 2, did not seem to be in physical distress.

Singleton is charged with one count each of domestic violence, endangering children and permitting child abuse.

Singleton waived her right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday in municipal court. Her defense attorney Ty Graham asked Guardado to release her. He said she is employed, has her own apartment, has another child and is 8 months pregnant. She has no criminal history other than a 2019 petty theft conviction.

Belfiglio said Rush could be released or given a lower bond because he would not endanger the general public, he would not be around his surviving son, and could stay with family.

Guardado sent the cases against Rush and Singleton to Stark County Common Pleas Court for grand jury consideration. She said a common pleas judge should determine whether to release them or lower their $1 million bonds.

Reach Nancy at 330-580-8382 or nancy.molnar@cantonrep.com. On X, formerly known as Twitter: @nmolnarTR.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: 'Absolutely horrific.' Canton detective describes home where baby starved to death