The Batavia woman who at one time thought she was the grandmother of a baby who died while reportedly in her son's care should have the criminal charge against her dismissed, her attorney will argue in a series of motions that will be filed March 3.
Jacquelyn Deats is charged with endangering the welfare of a child, under the theory that she took no action to seek medical attention for 6-month-old Chandler Zuchs before he died Dec. 10.
Court documents that were available at the time -- and have since been sealed -- contained statements by Jacquelyn Deats and her son Jeffrey Deats that seem to indicate the once-presumed grandmother was alone with Baby Chandler and noticed something wrong, but didn't call for an ambulance.
When Jeffrey Deats came downstairs that morning, he found Baby Chandler unresponsive. It was then that 9-1-1 was called.
Baby Chandler, according to later medical examiner reports, died of brain injuries.
Jeffrey Deats, who seems to have believed he fathered Chandler with Michelle Zuchs (aka Michelle Denise), was charged with manslaughter.
In Facebook and Twitter posts, prior to Chandler's death, he displayed a good deal of pride and affection for little Chandler.
While confined to the Genesee County Jail, Deats learned he wasn't Chandler's father.
A week after Chandler's death, Deats attempted to hang himself in his cell with bedsheets. He later died at ECMC.
Jacquelyn Deats appeared in court today with her attorney Thomas Burns and entered a not guilty plea to the charge of endangering the welfare of a child.
Burns, always aggressive on behalf of his clients, plans to file several motions aimed at either getting the charges dismissed or his client's statements surpressed.
Outside of court, Burns said he plans to challenge the legal sufficiency of the charge as well as bring a motion to dismiss the charge in the interest of justice.
A dismissal in the interest of justice has legal precedent and is predicated on a series of legal tests the judge must consider.
"The case meets all the criteria for dismissal," Burns said. "(The motion) doesn't necessarily look at the merits of the case, but at the person's background, culpability, lack of criminal record, lack of a drug problem, factors such as no need for rehabilitation, no protection of the community issues. You put it all together and argue that the charge should be dismissed."
Burns has yet to see any evidence in the case, which could also be a factor in his series of motions.
With the Jeffrey Deats case sealed, it's unclear if Burns will have access to the medical records and police reports.
The case was sealed by Judge Robert Balbick under New York Law that requires cases to be sealed when a criminal case is resolved in the defendant's favor. With the death of Jeffrey Deats, the charges against him were dismissed.
