Police “fooling around”; they just don’t care about child’s death
Two-year-old Kaylee Burgess was found dead in a bucket of water behind her grandmother’s house in Ladyville in September 2012. Since then, her parents, Kevin Burgess and Deidra Pratt, have been fighting to find answers to exactly what had happened to their baby girl.
The child’s mother, Pratt, has made it known publicly that she believes that her family members whom she left Kaylee in the care of on the day she went missing and was found dead, have information that they need to give to police.
The police, for their part, have informed the media that the investigation is still ongoing, but there wasn’t much to comment on. They did say, however, that the family is not cooperating with the investigation.
Today, Monday, Amandala visited Pratt, who said that she has made multiple calls and trips to the Ladyville Police Station, as well as to the Department of Public Prosecution (DPP).
In response to the police remarks on the investigation, Pratt said that she doesn’t believe that the police are referring to her immediate family, because they have been more than cooperative with the police.
Pratt said that all her attempts to work with the police in furthering an investigation into her daughter’s death have been futile.
“I always go to the police station, I always go to the DPP,” Pratt said. “The DPP say the Ladyville police have the case. Then you go to Ladyville police station and then police say, all they say is that they are looking into the matter. They don’t have enough evidence; they’re looking into the matter. That’s all they say, but they’re not doing anything.”
Pratt said the only way she thinks they will get justice for her daughter is if someone comes out and confesses to what had happened, because she doesn’t believe that the police are trying hard enough.
“I feel upset, I feel angry, but I mean, you go to them with an attitude, then they worse won’t want to hear what you have to say,” she said. “So like me and Kevin said, it’s justice we want, but I don’t think we could ever get it out of the police department.”
Pratt said that she has been told by the police that the investigating officer for the Ladyville police station has been changed since Kaylee’s death, and the case would have to be redone, meaning that the new investigating officer would have to redo interviews with the family and other individuals involved in order for him to carry out his investigation.
However, Pratt said that no one has gone to them as yet to do any interviews. She said that the last time she has been to the DPP’s office was in February, and her last trip to the Ladyville Police Station was about two weeks ago.
Pratt said that it has been a very trying time for her family, especially during the Christmas and Easter holidays.
“I wouldn’t want no other mother to go through what I’m going through because it’s a feeling that you have to try to deal with every day,” she said. “And the worst part”, she lamented, “is knowing in your heart that your family … and you can’t do anything about it. So it’s something really, really hard.”