April death of girl, 21 months, in Champion ruled a homicide

An ambulance worker saw marks on the girl’s body that did not come from rescue efforts, police said.

STAFF REPORT

CHAMPION — The Trumbull County Coroner’s office has ruled the April 2 death of a 21-month-old girl living with foster parents a homicide.

The girl, Tiffany Banks, was living with William and Bonnie Pattinson at 663 Center St. West, Champion police said. No charges have been filed, and the coroner would not provide information on the cause of death.

Champion police and Champion EMS were called to the home at 11:57 a.m. for a child not breathing.

A police officer was the first to arrive. He went into one of the duplex apartments and found the child on the floor, unresponsive, with the next-door neighbor doing CPR and rescue breathing.

The officer got a mobile defibrillator from his cruiser and used it to try to shock the child’s heart back to life, and the other man continued to give the girl rescue breathing until EMS workers arrived and took over the girl’s care.

Bonnie Pattinson told the officer that Banks was asleep for a nap for about 10 to 20 minutes, but when she checked on her, the girl was not breathing, so she took her to the neighbor’s duplex and received help from the neighbor.

The girl was later transported to Forum Health Trumbull Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.

A nurse at the hospital and an EMS worker both said the girl had marks on her body that had not come from the medical attention she had received, Champion police said.

The girl’s diaper and clothes were taken as evidence, as well as photos of the marks on the girl’s body, police said.

The Trumbull County Prosecutor’s office is assisting the Trumbull County Children Services Board and coroner’s office in the investigation.

Marcia Tiger, executive director of CSB, said the girl was in the permanent custody of CSB, meaning the parents had lost legal custody of the child and was living with foster parents at the time of her death. Tiger declined to say how long the child had lived with the Pattinsons.