Arkansas Family Demands Answers After Eight-Year-Old Son is Burned Across 80 Percent of His Body at White Family’s House and No One Called for Help

An Arkansas family is demanding answers and accountability after an 8-year-old boy was severely burned.

Jayceon Charles was at a friend’s house in Warren, Arkansas, in August, preparing to go to Magic Springs the next day. However, he left the home with 80 percent of his body burned, according to his family. Jayceon and his friend were roasting hot dogs when the fire erupted. No one at the friend’s home called or reported the incident. His family believes Jayceon’s race played a role in the lack of urgency in his treatment and attention to his case.

Jayceon’s mother, Lakiesha Belin said her son called and hung up. His father called back, and he was screaming. His parents rushed to the friend’s home to find Jayceon covered in Vaseline and plastic wrap. The third grader is now in the Arkansas Children’s Hospital intensive care unit recovering from burns across the back of his body.

The boy had to be resuscitated twice, his family said. He is breathing through a tube connected to a ventilator. Jayceon has suffered brain damage and kidney failure and has undergone several surgeries. Doctors have had to remove 5 inches of his small intestine, and he’s had a life-threatening infection called sepsis.

Earl Charles said none of the explanations he has gotten for what happened to his grandson make sense.

“The stories that’s been told never sat right with me from the beginning,” Charles said in a Facebook video. “I never understood why so many people dropped the ball and just didn’t show any concern.”

Jayceon’s family immediately contacted the police. The Arkansas State Police told KARK.com that it was taking over the investigation on Oct. 6 and will send findings to local prosecutors. However, Charles fears that “important evidence” may have been lost two months after the fiery incident.

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SOURCE: Atlanta Black Star, Nyamekye Daniel