Did justice system fail 3-year-old shot to death in Cleveland?

CLEVELAND (WJW) — The FOX 8 I-Team did some digging to ask if the justice system failed a 3-year-old boy shot to death last week in a drive-by shooting.

We found two suspects had been under watch by the court, and another suspect had already been wanted for murder. So, we investigated.

Little Luis Diaz died after getting shot while sitting in a car last week on West 66th Street. Police say gunfire during a drive-by shooting hit Luis and a man outside that car. Cleveland police homicide detectives have identified four suspects.

Records show a man nicknamed “Baby” had already been wanted for murder. Another man had been wearing an ankle bracelet while under watch by the court in a domestic violence case.

We also saw a photo of a teen arrested while wearing an ankle bracelet.

Then, we took what we found to Laura Cowan, a crime victim and activist.

“I’m not surprised,” she said.

Cowan wants the justice system to tighten up and do more to protect the innocent.

“I think it’s terrible,” she said. “So, they get out, and they do the crime again. If they stayed there like they were supposed to do in the first place, they wouldn’t get out.”

The I-Team also checked who’s monitoring ankle bracelets for the courts and how? How do sheriff’s deputies know someone went where they shouldn’t have gone while under electronic monitoring? And, how long does it take for deputies to find out?

An ankle bracelet alarm does not automatically lead to a manhunt to haul someone to jail.

The county released a statement saying it depends, in part, on the kind of suspect and criminal case involved. The statement said: 

The Electronic Monitoring Unit is a 24/7 unit that responds immediately to alerts that show up on SCRAM.net (GPS software). These alerts vary and are outlined in the alerts section of the manual that I sent over. A suspect that is non-compliant, for whatever reason that may be, is directly relayed to probation via email and based on their level of monitoring may be picked up immediately. We also respond immediately if the alleged defendant goes through their listed “victim” zone.  We also respond immediately for tampers with the equipment which includes them cutting their bracelet off. When that happens the probation department is notified immediately and a capias is typically issued from the court on that case. A recovery of the device is attempted and most often recovered where the defendant left the bracelet. We then notify their victim, if there is one, via phone and if necessary in person.  

Oddly, we saw the photo of the teen arrested in this case while wearing an ankle bracelet. But, Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court told us that the court has no record of that teen’s ankle bracelet.

Juan Davis now has been charged with aggravated murder in adult court despite wearing an ankle bracelet.

“This is an active case before the court, so the court cannot comment on specifics,” a court spokesman sent a statement. “In general, the policy is that whenever a GPS violation occurs, an alert is immediately sent to the Sheriff’s Department for response.”

In court on Monday morning, a judge ordered Davis held on a $2 million bond. A prosecutor spoke for the family of 3 year old Luis.

“Their life will not be the same,” he said. “They are distraught, and they agree with the 2 million dollar bond.”

Katherine Treadway also faces a murder charge, and in court, she wiped away tears.

Records show Juan Davis should not have been near her due to a prior case, yet they are both facing charges for the death of the child. We also found the teen arrested had been put on probation back in July. Juvenile court tells us he’s had cases for theft and aggravated menacing.

Meantime, as of Monday afternoon, U.S. Marshals were still looking for Devonte Parker, the man already wanted for murder. Records show the previous case involves a shooting on the city’s east side. It happened back in May on East 75th Street.

Multiple sources confirm, late Monday, US Marshals and Cleveland Police arrested Devonte Parker, the suspect in the child’s death who’d also been wanted for another murder.

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