Former Chester deputy and his girlfriend charged with child abuse, sheriff said
A former Chester County deputy sheriff and his girlfriend have been arrested after the woman’s children were neglected and abused, Chester County Sheriff Max Dorsey said.
The children were denied food and beaten, Dorsey said. An infant tested positive for heroin, Dorsey said.
Damato Sanchez Murray, 29, was charged Thursday around 4:30 p.m. with three counts of felony child abuse and neglect, according to arrest warrants obtained by The Herald.
He was a deputy at the sheriff’s office for about six months in 2018 before he was fired, Dorsey said.
“During the course of an investigation by Chester County deputies, evidence revealed that Murray neglected children who were under his care over a period of months, ranging from July of 2019 to January of 2020,” Dorsey said.
Murray, who lived with his girlfriend, is accused of abusing her children, warrants state. Murray beat a 9-year-old child and threw that child in a closet, according to the warrants.
He also is accused of hitting a 12-year-old child against a bunk bed, and denying that child food, according to the warrants.
Murray also is charged with injuring an 11-year-old when he slammed on brakes while driving a car, warrants state.
Murray’s girlfriend, Rylan DeAnn Jackson, 30, was charged with one count of felony child abuse or neglect after her 1-year-old tested positive for heroin, according to Dorsey.
The investigation started in February after the S.C. Department of Social Services contacted Chester deputies about the conditions the children were living in, according to a sheriff’s office incident report obtained by The Herald.
No trial date has been set for any of the cases. Murray remains in the Chester County jail.
This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 6:22 PM.
