The Marion County Sheriff’s Office has arrested the mother of a 3-year-old toddler who was bound and beaten to death by the woman’s boyfriend, while prosecutors have added a homicide charge against the man following additional investigation into the girl’s death.
Jennifer Farrah Kendrick, 26, was arrested on Tuesday, March 4, on two counts of felony child neglect in the death of her daughter, Paisley Brown.
Kendrick’s boyfriend, 32-year-old Jeroen Jarrel Coombs, who was already in custody for aggravated child abuse, is now facing an additional charge of homicide.
Coombs was arrested on February 19, after deputies responded to a home in the 16500 block of NE 44th Avenue in Citra and found Paisley unresponsive. Although medics rushed her to a local hospital, she ultimately succumbed to her injuries.
At the scene, deputies learned that Coombs had allegedly harmed the child and was attempting to flee. Detectives later discovered that Coombs had been home alone with the children that morning.
Records show that Coombs notified Kendrick that Paisley was unresponsive at 10:58 a.m., yet emergency services were not called until approximately 40 minutes later.
During an initial interrogation, Coombs reportedly confessed to using a robe tie to bind Paisley’s hands and painter’s tape to secure her legs to prevent her from reaching into her diaper.
While the toddler was restrained, Coombs admitted to dropping her onto the floor and repeatedly striking her. He eventually told detectives he realized he had taken his actions too far.
In hours after Paisley’s death, Kendrick took to social media to share information about the incident before eventually making her profiles private.
Before that change, in multiple posts, Kendrick claimed she was unaware of any abuse by Coombs. She stated that Coombs had never shown red flags or aggression in front of her.
Kendrick further claimed she had denied the biological father, Robert Brown, access to the children due to his own past.
Brown and a group of protestors held a “Justice for Paisley” demonstration on February 21.
Multiple screenshots of since-deleted posts by Kendrick show that she vehemently maintained that she was unaware of the abuse.
However, during an interview with Major Crimes Detective Karla Santana-Palau on Wednesday, March 4, Kendrick was allegedly confronted with evidence and admitted she was aware that Coombs had previously bound and abused Paisley.
Kendrick allegedly acknowledged her failure to protect her daughter, admitting to the detective that her lack of intervention contributed to the child’s death. In addition to the neglect charges, Kendrick was found to be in violation of her felony probation.
Both Kendrick and Coombs are currently being held at the Marion County Jail without bond.