Nickolas Shane Stephenson (Buncombe County Sheriff”s Department).
A 37-year-old man from North Carolina is facing decades in prison after being convicted for the horrific abuse and neglect of his newborn daughter, which left her so battered that her “skin was loose on her body,” according to authorities.
Nickolas Shane Stephenson was found guilty of second-degree murder and felony child abuse in relation to the demise of his 12-week-old daughter, Riley Stephenson. The Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office revealed that a judge sentenced Stephenson to a term ranging from about 27 years to 34 1/2 years in prison. The jury chose to convict him on the lesser charge of second-degree murder, avoiding a first-degree murder conviction.
“The evidence in this case was extremely graphic. We are grateful to the jury for their careful consideration of the evidence, which has held Stephenson accountable for the heartless cruelty he inflicted on this most vulnerable and innocent child,” District Attorney Todd Williams stated.
According to prosecutors, Stephenson was responsible for Riley’s death in 2022, having subjected her to torture, abuse, neglect, and starvation. Riley’s mother, Diandra Fuhr-Farlow, aged 32, had previously acknowledged her role by pleading guilty to felony child abuse after initially being charged with first-degree murder. She provided key testimony against Stephenson during the trial, as noted by prosecutors.
As reported by Law&Crime, deputies from the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Department, along with Emergency Medical Services personnel, responded to a 911 call around 2:30 p.m. on June 28, 2022. The call concerned a residence in the 10 block of Four Wheel Drive in Candler, situated about 10 miles southwest of Asheville, shared by local ABC affiliate WLOS. The caller, later identified as Fuhr-Farlow, reportedly informed the emergency dispatcher that her daughter was unresponsive in her crib.
Upon reaching the location, first responders observed that Riley had noticeable physical injuries and was severely undernourished “to the point where her skin was loose on her body,” according to a warrant obtained by WLOS. The injuries included signs of bruising and burns on the baby’s face.
Medics rushed Riley to Mission Hospital on Biltmore Avenue for treatment. Unfortunately, she succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead later that evening.
Doctors reportedly told investigators that the infant had about five separate burn marks covering the back of her head and face. Other injuries included a fracture to her left collar bone, multiple broken ribs, a fractured right arm, and dehydration, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported.
In a subsequent interview with investigators, Fuhr-Farlow allegedly claimed that the bruising was the result of Riley being in the bathtub about two weeks prior and striking her head on the faucet. She suffered the burns when she and Stephenson tried to treat the injury with a hot/cold pack, per the warrant.
“Then they attempted to treat the injuries with Neosporin,” authorities reportedly wrote. “A couple days later, while she was applying the ointment, Riley grabbed the Neosporin cap, placed it in her mouth and started choking. Ms. Fuhr-Farlow was able to retrieve the cap and Riley started breathing normally.”
However, in recently filed court documents obtained by the Citizen-Times, Fuhr-Farlow later allegedly told investigators that Riley’s injuries were the result of physical abuse at the hands of Stephenson. She reportedly claimed that he dangled the infant by her feet several times and shook her until she cried. She also allegedly stated that she had seen Stephenson “choking the victim child” at least once.
In an autopsy report issued in December 2022, the medical examiner wrote that despite Riley being extremely underweight and suffering from “florid pneumonia,” she had no medication and almost no nourishment in her system at the time of her death, WLOS reported. The medical examiner also reportedly noted that Fuhr-Farlow told detectives that Riley had not been eating “for several days prior to her death.”
Charging documents reportedly state that Stephenson physically abused Riley, striking her multiple times and intentionally burning the infant, while Fuhr-Farlow “intentionally and neglectfully” left Riley “in a serious injured state that led to her death.”
