Mom accused of baby's beheading was ordered to stay away

Jayniah Watkins was supposed to be somewhere safe.

For Jayniah, just 3 months old, that meant staying away from her mother, who had been hospitalized for "acting crazy" and talking about demons. A judge said her mother, Deasia Watkins, posed an imminent risk of harm to her own child.

Yet weeks after the judge ordered social workers to take custody of the baby, Jayniah's mother found her.

The carnage that followed was horrific. Sometime late Sunday or early Monday morning in a College Hill home, police say, Deasia Watkins broke Jayniah's arm, stabbed her at least 15 times and cut off her head.

When she'd finished, prosecutors say, Watkins placed the large knife she'd used to kill Jayniah in the baby's hand and went to bed.

Police found the baby on a kitchen counter Monday morning. They found Watkins in bed, covered in blood.

"This is one of the most disturbing cases I've ever seen," said Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters.

Deters and others investigating the case blame Jayniah's death on a lethal combination of severe mental illness, a difficult family situation and the inability of the social services system to provide around-the-clock supervision for every child with unstable or neglectful parents.

Watkins had been hospitalized, declared a danger to Jayniah and ordered to stay away from her. Hamilton County's Job and Family Services took custody of the child and temporarily placed her with an aunt, on condition the mother not be allowed in the home.

Social workers saw the child at Job and Family Services' Downtown office as recently as Friday.

Still, Jayniah is dead.

Deters said the investigation isn't over, but it's possible Watkins will be the only one to face criminal charges. The aunt, who is believed to have been asleep when Jayniah died, may be needed as a witness, Deters said.

As for Job and Family Services, Deters said social workers followed the court order and did what they were asked to do: They found a relative to step in after the parents were deemed neglectful and they checked on the child to make sure she was in good health.

He said it appears they didn't know the aunt had allowed Watkins to move into the home.

"The JFS people did their job," Deters said. "No one has resources to monitor a child 24/7. They did the best they could."

When asked about the decision to place the child with the aunt, Deters said the investigation so far has found no red flags that would have warned social workers of a potential danger. "Whether this aunt was the right choice, obviously she wasn't," Deters said. "And this tragedy ensued."

JFS officials declined to comment.

Investigators believe Watkins had been living with the baby's father, James Brown, but moved into the home with the aunt and Jayniah about a week before the baby's death. The reason for the move isn't yet known, but the consequences are: Coroner Lakshmi Sammarco said the child died after suffering "multiple traumas," though it's unclear which was the fatal blow.

"It was pretty horrific," Sammarco said. "These are images that will be indelibly marked in my memory."

Prosecutors say the body was discovered by a 5-year-old relative who had been dropped off at the house that morning before school.

Watkins, who remains under guard at Deaconess Hospital, has not spoken to investigators and appears to be suffering from severe mental illness. Deters said he is unlikely to seek the death penalty in the case because of her mental state.

Court records show that Watkins was diagnosed with postpartum psychosis after a Jan. 25 incident at her apartment. Police responded to a 911 call complaining that Watkins was screaming and Jayniah was crying loudly.

Watkins, who police said smelled of marijuana, initially refused to open the door and, once police were inside, refused to hand over the baby. When they took the child, court records say, Watkins passed out with her eyes open.

According to court records, Brown, the child's father, told them Watkins had been "acting crazy lately, speaking of demons."

Watkins was supposed to take medication for her mental problems, but Brown later told authorities he had never seen her do so.

Watkins was taken to University of Cincinnati Medical Center following the Jan. 25 incident and given a psychological evaluation. After being diagnosed with postpartum psychosis, she was admitted to Deaconess Hospital for 72 hours.

At a March 6 juvenile court hearing, Magistrate Judge Elisa Murphy ordered Job and Family Services to take custody of the child because she could not be safely placed with the parents.

"Imminent risk of harm exists if the child returns to her surroundings," Murphy wrote.

Reporter Emilie Eaton contributed.