WYOMING, Mich. - At 19-months-old, Yurik Birkenmeyer weighed 22 pounds -- the same amount he'd weighed 10 months prior.
Yurik's parents waived their preliminary hearing Thursday, but the doctor who conducted the boy's autopsy, testified before the case was bound over to circuit court.
Kent County forensic pathologist, Dr. David Start, said the percentage of people, especially children, who die from dehydration is certainly a minority, but on March 16, Yurik became a part of the statistic.
Charges were brought against Alexander Birkenmeyer, 30, and Andrea Todd, 26, once Dr. Start completed the autopsy
"The manner of death is homicide, as the dehydration is the result of neglect by a caregiver, or caregivers," Start said to a Wyoming District court room on August 16.
Three years prior to Yurik's death, the couple lost their first child, a baby girl. She died from 'unsafe sleeping conditions,' but no charges were ever filed. Yurik had been in protective custody once before under different circumstances, but his parents regained custody just 5 months prior to his death.
"Articles of clothing just included a disposable diaper that was wet with urine," Start said.
Start said there was certainly evidence of both malnutrition and dehydration. Yurik's eyes were sunken into his face and his skin tented due to the lack of fluids in his system. The doctor testified that he was not sure how long the boy had been dehydrated, but said this did not happen over night. Start said he could find no other medical conditions that could have contributed to Yurik's death.
The first responders on scene found Yurik in a nearly 90 degree room. He had a wound on the back of his head, which Start said was consistent with a pressure wound developed from the baby's head being up against a surface (i.e. a mattress) for an extended period of time.
Yurik also had nicotine, which can be a result of second hand smoke, in his system at the time of his death.
The case will now be bound over to circuit court where it could go to trial.
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Emma Nicolas is a multimedia journalist. Have a news tip or question for Emma? Get in touch by email enicolas@wzzm13.com, Facebook or Twitter.