CANTON, Ohio — Following an arrest warrant being issued Monday for the foster parents of a 4-year-old who died earlier this month, the couple was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service.
The foster parents, Demetres Givens, 42, and Jamie Thompson, 37, are charged with involuntary manslaughter, a first-degree felony, and endangering children.
U.S. Marshal Pete Elliot said the couple was found in their car in the jail's parking lot. After being arrested, the couple told authorities they were about to surrender to police.
According to the Canton Police Department, officers responded to a home on Gilbert Circle NE on May 5 for a little boy who was found in his bed and wasn't breathing.
EMS transported the child to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Following their arrest, the couple was booked into the Stark County Jail.
Myracle Givens says her brother, Demetres Givens, was the kinship caregiver for her son, Berko.
But says she was left out of the picture only to find out last Tuesday, her son was dead.
“It’s unimaginable, it's unimaginable,” Myracle said.
Myracle has a lot of unanswered questions. Last Tuesday, she says she got a call from the Stark County Children’s Services about her son.
“The caseworker told me that they got a report that Berko, my son, was taken to Mercy hospital down in Canton,” Givens said.
Her son died the day before. Canton Police say they went to a home on Gilbert Circle NE.
Thompson called 911.
“I need an ambulance here. I just tried to get my 3 year old up and he’s not breathing at all,” Thompson told a dispatcher.
Thompson is heard on 911 saying she tried CPR.
“He’s had a bunch of medical problems,” Thompson said.
A police report shows Thompson told officers the boy with autism was her adoptive son, and the child couldn’t keep food down from an eating disorder. She stated the child had been on a liquid diet.
Thompson said when her fiancee and Berko’s uncle, Demetres, went to check on the child around 9:30 that night, he found him in his crib with vomit nearby.
“He hasn’t been keeping food down and they’ve been wanting to put a feeding tube on him,” Thompson said to dispatchers.
Myracle says she trusted her brother to care for Berko as part of a case plan in family court. She recalls last seeing her son at Christmas time in 2023.
“He was walking around. He looked like a normal kid. He actually walked right over to me and was letting me feed him. He didn’t seem to have any feeding problems or issues then,” Myracle said.
Last Wednesday, Miracle said she saw her brother and Thompson in family court. But by Friday, police had a warrant out for the couple’s arrest.
The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force found the couple in the car they were looking for in the Stark County Jail parking lot. After their arrest, U.S. Marshals say they claimed they were about to surrender.
“I should have been involved in medical appointments, I should have been involved in visits, I should have been involved in his life period,” Myracle said.
At last check, a court date for the couple had not been set, but was expected later this week. News 5 Investigators reached out to the Stark County Children’s Services but haven’t yet heard back.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story said the child was 3 years old, which was the age given by police. Court records show that the child is 4 years old. The story has been updated with the correct age.
