Rebekah Baptiste: Reports of abuse reportedly made to DCS years before Arizona girl's death

(This story contains subject matter and details that some may find disturbing. Discretion is advised.)

PHOENIX - The death of a 10-year-old girl, whose father and his girlfriend are now accused of her murder, has prompted an internal investigation by the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS).

The backstory:

Rebekah Baptiste was found unresponsive on July 27 in Holbrook, Ariz. She was taken to a local hospital before being flown to Phoenix Children's Hospital, where she died three days later.

Rebekah's father, Richard Baptiste, and his girlfriend, Anicia Woods, are accused of first-degree murder and three counts of child abuse.

Dig deeper:

Prosecutors say it was "long-term, horrendous abuse" that caused Rebekah's death. They said Rebekah's brain bleeding was so severe, it left her brain-dead.

Court records also indicate this was not the first time Rebekah needed care for these types of injuries, with prosecutors revealing 140 pages of hospital records have been handed over in this case.

We have also learned that the Phoenix school where Rebekah was a student made 12 reports to the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) over the past four years. However, DCS officials are disputing that.

What they're saying:

Governor Katie Hobbs said on Aug. 6 that the state is looking into how DCS handled reports on behalf of Rebekah. 

"Let me say this is a very tragic situation. We are looking into what happened," Gov. Hobbs said.

Meanwhile, the school Rebekah once attended are remembering her by sharing one of her school projects. The project is a poem titled "Magenta," which was Rebekah's favorite color.

"Learning about endangered animals makes me feel sad, because these animals should be loved, not harmed. I hope that endangered animals will survive," read a portion of the project.

"The life of a shining bright 10-year-old was taken in a very gruesome and horrible way," said Becky Jones.

Jones, who is the K-8 principal at Empower College Prep, described Rebekah as a bright and eager student. Jones said the school had been worried about Rebekah's safety for years, with students and staff members reporting concerns.

"There were strangulation marks on one, maybe more than one occasion," Jones said. "What I would call torture, the dad and girlfriend called punishment or discipline."

In a statement, DCS told us that reports must meet a specific threshold to be investigated. The agency said only one of the calls from Empower College Prep in the last year led to an investigation.

What's next:

Baptiste and Woods will be in court on Sept. 4.

Meanwhile, Empower College Prep is having a celebration of life ceremony for Rebekah at 1:00 p.m. on Aug. 14. They are asking those who plan on attending to wear magenta.

DCS Statement:

"It is with a heavy heart that we acknowledge the death of Rebekah Baptiste, a child who was known to the Department. Anytime a child in our community is harmed, it deeply affects us all, especially when we know the family. Our dedicated staff work tirelessly to ensure the safety of all children, but tragically, those who intend to harm children can sometimes evade even the most robust systems designed to protect them. In response to this incident, the Department is actively collaborating with law enforcement in a joint investigation to ensure that the people responsible for this heinous act are brought to justice.

The Department would like to correct some information made public by other sources related to the death of Rebekah Baptiste. According to Department records, Empower School called the Hotline 5 times in the past year, and one time the allegations met statutory report criteria. The other four times the Department was not able to investigate the allegations because they did not meet the statutory threshold for abuse or neglect. We do not have any records that a relative called the Hotline after 2019 to allege abuse or neglect of Rebekah or her siblings.

We take every call to our hotline seriously, but we only have the authority to initiate an investigation if the call meets statutory report criteria. Rebekah deserved love, safety and a chance to thrive. There are no words that will make sense of the pain she endured or her life that was tragically cut short. Her loss is a sorrow we carry deeply, a reminder of the work we must never stop doing. We know this loss is felt most deeply by her school community that saw Rebekah most often. In honoring her memory, the department will strive to educate our schools to better understand what meets report criteria so that when they do make a call to the Hotline, we can take appropriate action."

DCS gave more information about the reporting criteria:

The victim is currently under the age of 18; victim has been physically, emotionally, or sexually abused, neglected, abandoned, or exploited by a parent, guardian, custodian, or adult member of the victim's household; victim is a resident of or present in Arizona, and the identity or current location of the child victim, the child victim's family, or the person suspected of abuse or neglect is known or can be reasonably ascertained.

DCS continues, "In Arizona, report criteria is established by ARS 8-455. The allegation must also state that the parent’s conduct has either harmed the child or puts the child at substantial risk of harm. This language was changed by the legislature from unreasonable risk of harm to substantial risk of harm in 2022. General allegations of bad parenting do not rise to the level of meeting report criteria. If a call does not meet the criteria, it is placed into a separate category where a unit/supervisor reviews it for a second time to ensure that nothing was missed.

When a report is investigated, certain criteria must be met in order to take custody of the children. State law requires that the Department use a safety assessment model. This model cannot be changed without legislative approval. Under the safety assessment model, the children must be in present or impending danger, and there must be no other way to remedy the safety concern other than removal from the home. The model requires the Department to interview the alleged victims and perpetrators and other members of the household. However, the Department cannot compel participation in the investigation. Law enforcement also cannot compel participation in the investigation. Without the ability to compel participation, the Department may not always be able to gather the information necessary to convince a court that removal from the home is necessary.

The Department’s Safety Analysis Review Team will be conducting a thorough review of this case. The goal is to identify and understand any systemic barriers that may have influenced the outcome, and to implement data-driven systemic changes to prevent such tragedies in the future. The Department will continue to be transparent and release information related to this case and our involvement with the family as we are legally permitted to do so."