Kamryn Schlitter, the little girl that lost her life as the result physical abuse a year ago, is now the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit filed by her mother, Nicole King, as reported by Eastern Iowa News Now.
Kamryn, 18 months old at the time of her death, succumbed on March 28 in an Iowa City hospital to injuries sustained a week prior. Medics had been called to her home at 245 Clymer Rd. in Hiawatha and found her in the throes of seizure-like symptoms.
Her death certificate reads that she died due to "non-accidental" head trauma.
The lawsuit was filed by Kamryn's mother, Nicole King, on January 27. In it she alleges that Kamryn's father, Zyriah Schlitter, of Cedar Rapids, along with Amy Parmer, of Hiawatha, of "beating" and abusing the child to the point that it directly led of her death.
Jerry Vander Sanden, King's Linn County Attorney, states that the investigation is ongoing and no criminal charges have been filed.
Vander Sanden said, "Obviously this is a very grave and serious matter, involving the death of a young child. It's a matter that our office takes seriously, and we are working together with the (Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation) and the Hiawatha Police Department in an effort to resolve this case."
Also named in the civil lawsuit are Apple Kids Inc., its current owner Kendran Imhoff, and former owner Lisa Burkle. The daycare facility is named due to its failure to report a bruise, when it was discovered on Kamryn, to the Iowa Department of Human Services, DHS.
The lawsuit seeks, "all damages for which recovery may be allowed" and include physical and mental pain and suffering that Kamryn sustained, as well as health care costs and losses to the child's estate.
The suit states that Kamryn normally resided with her mother. But, in the weeks before she died, Schlitter and Palmer were given temporary custody.
It was during this same period, while away from her mother's care, that Kamryn was entrusted to Apple Kids daycare.
King has accused a daycare worker of discovering a bruise on Kamryn - partially hidden with makeup - and failing to report it to the DHS. The employee is also believed to have photographed the bruising.
Approximately one week later, and finding more bruises on the toddler, the daycare then did file a report with DHS. But by the time DHS begun their investigation, the child died from her injuries.
The suit reads, "The wrongful actions, errors and omissions of all defendants were a proximate result of Kamryn Schlitter's death and the injuries and damage suffered by the plaintiff."
Schlitter has denied most of the allegations but has admitted to an item from the original petition that stated that "either Zyriah Schlitter or Amy Parmer, or both, struck the fatal blows."
Parmer has entered a plea of not guilty.
Imhoff, though reached at the daycare, has denied comment, and Michael Lindeman, the attorney for both Parmer and Schlitter, has not returned calls made by media.
Vander Sanden, in regards to filing criminal charges along with the civil lawsuit for wrongful death said, "The medical examiner is in a position to make a determination about what the medical cause of death was, but as far as filing a criminal charge, it's not enough to know that a crime was committed. As a part to that, you need to know who committed that crime."
Kamryn's maternal grandmother, Jeri King, said, "We're still striving for justice, and we're not going away. We want to keep her memory alive, because Kamryn deserves better."
If you have lost someone you loved in a wrongful death scenario, you may be due monetary compensation. Contact a personal injury attorney today to discuss your case and how your loss has affected your life.