Did Dangerous Conditions Lead to Toddler’s Drowning?

CHARLOTTE, NC — A 15-month-old child, drowned in a hidden stream behind his East Charlotte home.

Tonight, we’re getting a first look at the dangerous conditions that may have claimed the toddler’s life, and hearing from residents who say property owners need to do more to keep this neighborhood safe.

“Ain’t no one-year-old baby gonna come back here,” one neighbor told us, leading us to the stream.

It is hard to imagine. A toddler, all alone. ending up dead in a shallow stream, within shouting distance of the street.

We’re about 50 yards from the house where 15-month-old Elijah lived with his family. He was being watched by a caregiver. Police say that she went inside, and he made his way back here, through this overgrown area, on top of all these dead leaves. And here it is. You can see the water down this slope. This is where they found his body.

According to police sources, the caregiver says she went inside the house to use the bathroom, leaving the toddler outside with siblings and other neighborhood kids.

After 20 to 30 minutes of searching, neighbors say the boy’s stepfather found him, tried CPR, but could not revive the child.

Residents on Terrybrook Lane say this is a tragedy that’s been waiting to happen. Many didn’t even know the stream was here; stagnant water, hidden behind such treacherous conditions.

“It needs to be blocked off,” says neighbor Eric Mercer. “I mean there’s no security for any kids, anything. It’s not secure. It’s not safe.”

We searched Mecklenburg County property records. They show that this home, and several others on this block, are owned by John and Vanessa Graves. We found several code enforcement violations for the address in the last few years.

People we talked to in the neighborhood say they have taken the landlords to court before, trying to improve their living conditions.

“I don’t even want to talk about the maintenance around here, or who owns this place, because she should have known about this,” says Mercer. “It’s a safety issue.”

I called a number listed for John Graves, who hung up on me when I asked about any plan to improve the dangerous conditions in the neighborhood.

CMPD is still investigating this case.