Man accused of child's death to stay in jail

CAMDEN - A Blackwood man will remain in custody on a charge of killing a toddler, a judge ruled Friday.

Travis Graham, 22, consented to a prosecution request that he be held at Camden County Jail, Superior Court Judge Edward McBride Jr. noted at a brief hearing.

Graham is accused of murdering 3-year-old Charlette Dawkins, the daughter of his live-in girlfriend, in March 2017.

He's also charged with endangering the welfare of a child, according to a criminal complaint that notes Graham failed "to timely seek medical treatment for (Charlette's) obviously serious injuries."

More:Lawsuit seeks to break block on sports betting in Cherry Hill

More:Guard charged with trying to smuggle opioids into Camden County jail

Graham brought the child to a Stratford hospital on March 13, 2017, claiming she had fallen down the stairs while they were alone in their Bittersweet Drive home, according to the Camden County Prosecutor's Office.

Text messages on Graham's phone indicate he waited three hours before taking Charlette to an emergency room, according to a probable cause statement for his arrest.

In his initial account, Graham said he told Charlette to go to bed after she cracked the screen of her iPad.

"Graham stated that as (Charlette) proceeded to go upstairs to her bedroom, he heard her falling down the stairs," says the probable cause statement.

"Graham claimed that he caught (Charlette) prior to her reaching the bottom of the stairs," it adds.

He said the girl "was upset" for about 30 minutes, then fell asleep.

Graham also told investigators he noted "traces of blood" on the child's mouth when he tried to wake her. He claimed he attempted CPR and changed the girl's clothing before taking her to the former Kennedy University Hospital.

Charlette died the next day after being airlifted to Cooper University Hospital in Camden.

The girl had suffered a severe traumatic brain injury, and had bruises to her forehead, torso and legs, the prosecutor's office said Tuesday in announcing murder charges against Graham.

It also noted the girl had "multiple healing rib fractures."

Charlette's maternal grandmother, Renay Rodriguez of Sewell, waged a social media campaign to highlight her suspicions that Charlette was the victim of an attack.

Rodriguez and several family members attended the hearing, along with several investigators. The grandmother said a probe into Charlette's death began shortly after the child was taken to the hospital.

"I hope he goes to jail for the rest of his life," Rodriguez said of Graham.

 "He silenced Charlette's voice," she said. "But we will not let him forget what he did"

Graham admitted to investigators last month that he hit the girl's forehead with the back of his hand when she refused to take a nap. He said the blow caused her to spin around and fall down the stairs, according to the prosecutor's office.

In that statement, Graham also asserted he sought medical care for the girl within five minutes.

The Medical Examiner's Office earlier this month ruled the girl's death was a homicide. It had previously said the manner of death was undetermined.

Graham has been held in Camden County Jail since his arrest last month on charges connected to three armed robberies of stores in Gloucester Township. He wielded a knife during one holdup and an airsoft gun in the others, authorities alleged.

He's also charged with individual holdups in Gloucester and Salem counties.

Camden County Assistant Prosecutor Christine Shah identified Graham as a suspect in Charlette's murder at a July 20 pretrial detention hearing on the robbery charges.

Jim Walsh: @jimwalsh_cp; 856-425-5711; jwalsh@gannettnj.com

Also in South Jersey

• Police say Washington Township man sold truck day after hit-and-run crash
• Can Camden turn a toxic dumping ground into a playground?
• GALLERY: Toxic Camden Labs site to be cleared
• State prison officer charged with drug smuggling scheme