Squalor of Harlem home where boy, 4, was starved to death is revealed, as parents are indicted for murder

The older, surviving children of 2 Harlem parents accused of starving their 4-year-old lad Jah’Meik Modlin to death last period were truthful malnourished that they were incapable to provender themselves, lacking the basal centrifugal skills to adjacent clasp a weapon oregon spoon, prosecutors said yesterday.

One chamber successful the fetid, three-bedroom flat was truthful filthy that the level could not beryllium seen done the magnitude of caked ungraded and excrement connected it, officials said.

Feces covered a propped-up mattress and the walls of that bedroom, which was littered with a fewer pieces of breached furniture. The country was the apartment’s lone 1 with a fastener — connected the extracurricular of the door, allowing idiosyncratic to beryllium locked inside, according to tribunal papers. None of the different rooms successful the flat adjacent had doorknobs.

Naytavia Ragsdale, above, successful tribunal connected Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, portion being deed with upgraded charges for execution successful the 2nd grade for starving to decease her 4-year-old son, Jah’Meik Modlin. (Gregory P. Mango / Pool)

“The decease of Jah’Meik Modlin, an guiltless 4-year-old child, is simply a calamity that has scarred this city,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who announced a transgression indictment against the child’s parents.

“That helium died a dilatory and achy death, starving alongside his older siblings, someway isolated successful the bosom of Harlem, is simply a stain connected our corporate conscience. Today, his parents are indicted for allegedly sidesplitting him done utmost carnal neglect and persistent maltreatment with depraved indifference for his life.”

The parents, Nytavia Ragsdale, 26, and Laron Modlin, 25, were officially charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and 4 counts of endangering the payment of a child.

Laron Modlin, 25, is walked into his arraignment to beryllium charged successful the decease of his son, Jah’Meik Modlin, connected Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, successful Manhattan Criminal Court successful New York. (Barry Williams for New York Daily News)

The caller indictment expanded connected immoderate of the maltreatment the children faced, and included immoderate caller details astir their location of horrors.

Prosecutors said the kids went bare successful a location stocked with food, including caller nutrient successful the refrigerator and different fare successful the the cabinets, the second which were locked with zip ties. The refrigerator was turned toward the partition truthful its doors could not beryllium easy opened, according to tribunal documents.

Bragg said Jah’Meik and his older sisters, ages 5, 6 and 7, were not successful school, and had not seen a doc successful much than 2 years.

Jah’Meik Modlin was pronounced dormant astatine Harlem Hospital aft helium was recovered unconscious and unresponsive wrong an flat astatine 2484 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd., above, successful Manhattan connected Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News)

The parents isolated the children and kept household and friends away, limiting enactment to telephone calls and FaceTime chats.

When helium died past month, officials said Jah’Meik weighed lone astir 19 pounds, little than immoderate Thanksgiving turkeys. He suffered from malnutrition, dehydration and starvation and had astir nary assemblage fat, tribunal records said.

According to prosecutors, Modlin called 911 soon earlier 8 p.m. connected Oct. 13 and told a dispatcher that Jah’Meik was unconscious and nonresponsive successful their location connected Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd. adjacent W. 145th St.

The kid was taken to Harlem Hospital, wherever helium died the adjacent morning.

Naytavia Ragsdale is seen successful tribunal connected Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, portion being deed with upgraded charges for execution successful the 2nd grade for starving to decease her 4-year-old son, Jah’Meik Modlin. (Gregory P. Mango / Pool)

Officials said Jah’Meik and his sisters arrived astatine the infirmary with layers of ungraded connected their tegument and feces matted successful their hair.

Ragsdale’s relatives said she had reached retired to societal workers from the city’s Administration for Children’s Services but nary 1 helped her, Jah’Meik oregon her 3 emaciated young daughters.

ACS had visited the location earlier to analyse concerns astir malnutrition, but investigators did not substantiate the allegation, a instrumentality enforcement root said.

Naytavia Ragsdale reacts to being deed with upgraded charges for the execution of her 4-year-old son, Jah’Meik Modlin. (Gregory P. Mango / Pool)

The child’s decease sparked a preliminary reappraisal by the city’s Department of Investigation of ACS’s handling of the small boy’s case, which whitethorn pb to a afloat probe, a spokesperson told the Daily News.

Relatives said some parents had struggled with intelligence wellness issues.