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Rodeo man told cops he and his girlfriend beat her 2-year-old son to death for grabbing vape pen and eating Doritos, police say

Baby girl suffered 26 broken ribs, internal injuries

By NATE GARTRELL | ngartrell@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: October 24, 2023 at 2:34 p.m. | UPDATED: October 25, 2023 at 1:33 a.m.

RODEO — In the hours after 2-year-old King Kemp died from internal injuries suffered during multiple prolonged beatings, his mother’s 21-year-old boyfriend allegedly described to police how he and King’s mother would “discipline” her toddler boy and baby girl in tandem — he would hold the children down and she would punch.

Police say that the confession by 21-year-old Tyshawn Haywood painted a picture of rampant physical abuse inside the Rodeo apartment where Haywood lived with his girlfriend, 22-year-old Destiny Deboe, and Deboe’s two children: King, and a 10-month-old girl whose name is being protected by the pseudonym Jane Doe. By the end of the police investigation, Haywood and Deboe had been charged with murder, child abuse, and torture. ... Investigators have additionally learned that Deboe recently moved to the Bay Area from Ohio shortly after police there opened a child abuse investigation against her, according to authorities.

Medical records showed evidence of extensive, prolonged abuse to both children that was so bad authorities feared at one point that Doe would succumb to her injuries as well. But after denying involvement in the abuse, Haywood allegedly gave a statement and penned an apology letter admitting to not only striking King with his hands but also beating him with the metal strap on a belt as Deboe assisted, then placing him in a cold bath after the young child went unconscious.

When they realized the boy was mortally injured, the couple allegedly concocted a story about King drowning during his nightly bath. Hours later, in a police interrogation room, Haywood allegedly told a different tale: that Deboe and Haywood lost their temper after King grabbed Deboe’s vape pen and began eating Doritos he wasn’t allowed to have. ... But King’s autopsy — along with Doe’s hospital records — would demonstrate to police that King’s death was the result of prolonged physical abuse, not a onetime attack. The boy suffered nine broken ribs and showed damage to his heart, liver, lungs, and spleen, bruising all over his body, scars on his chest and neck, and evidence of an older injury to his skull. The baby girl suffered equally horrific injuries, including 26 broken ribs, hemorrhaging in her eye, brain bleeding, and amphetamine in her system, according to authorities.

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