Nurses notified law enforcement in felony abuse case; toddler tested positive for meth, police say

The 19-month-old victim had bruising covering his face, torso, back, head and ears.

Nurses at St. Louis Children’s Hospital in St. Louis said it was one of the worst cases of abuse they had seen in a while, according to a sheriff’s department document.

Cape Girardeau County sheriff’s deputies on Monday arrested Devin M. Biri, 28, of Jackson. The Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Biri with class B felony abuse of a child, which carries a prison term of five to 15 years if he were convicted.

A nurse at Saint Francis Convenient Care in Jackson notified deputies of possible abuse when the toddler’s mother took the child to the clinic because he was running a fever and vomiting, according to a probable-cause statement filed in the case by deputy Aaron Harris.

The nurse noticed the child was bleeding from his ears and overheard Biri yell at the mother over the phone, Harris wrote.

Harris and deputy Robert Jenkins went to Biri’s home in the 3300 block of County Road 324 in Jackson but were unable to make contact with either parent, according to the statement.

Harris received permission from AT&T to track the mother’s cellphone, and they located it in the 1400 block of County Road 442, a house of Biri’s relative, Harris wrote.

Biri met the deputies at the house and agreed to allow them to see the infant, but he did not want the deputies to speak to his other children, according to the statement.

Deputies saw blood on the child’s lips, dried blood on his ear and bruises covering his entire back, Harris wrote.

The child and the mother were taken to the emergency room, and deputies took pictures of the child’s injuries, according to the statement.

The infant also received X-ray and CT scans, which revealed two fractures to a bone in the back of the skull, Harris wrote.

Deputies spoke with the mother, who said she noticed bruising to the child’s back when she returned home from work several days before, according to the statement. Biri told her the child fell out of his crib, Harris wrote.

The mother said she noted the child cannot walk and only recently had been pulling himself into a standing position, according to the statement.

Biri was the primary caretaker for the child because the mother works, Harris wrote.

The hospital’s medical staff said the child’s injuries were not consistent with falling out of a crib or hitting his head on a shelf, according to the statement.

Jenkins and deputy Carrie Berry talked to Biri, who said his son’s injuries occurred because the child jumped against the bed rails of the crib, Harris wrote. Biri said the injuries to his back were because he threw himself backward onto the floor when he gets upset, according to the statement.

“The injuries to [the victim] do not appear to be consistent with Devin Biri’s explanation,” Harris wrote.

On Tuesday, the child tested positive for methamphetamine, according to the statement.

Sheriff’s Capt. David James said Biri’s three other children — ages 4, 7 and 9 — were referred to the Department of Social Services. He said the three showed no signs of physical abuse.

bkleine@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3644

Pertinent address:

1400 block of County Road 442, Jackson, Mo.