A Queens mother is clinging to hope for her 2-year-old son’s survival following the arrest of the boy’s father, accused of brutally assaulting the toddler.
Cyndy Williams took to Facebook to express her anguish and plea for support, writing, “I’m calling out for help. Please pray for my baby.” Her message about her son, Maliek, continued with, “If my son is not here, I don’t want to be here either. I can’t breathe, I can’t talk, and I won’t live without my baby boy.”
Dayvon Morrison was taken into custody on Tuesday after allegedly attacking his young son at the Manhattan View Hotel, which is currently serving as a homeless shelter. The incident occurred on 21st Street near 38th Avenue in Long Island City. Morrison now faces charges of attempted murder.
The assault reportedly took place around 7 p.m. on Sunday, but Maliek did not receive medical attention for over 12 hours. It was only after he was returned to his mother that he was rushed to the hospital, according to police reports.
“My baby is fighting for his life in the ICU, please, I can’t do anything but pray,” Williams shared in a heartfelt post. “I am asking for prayers from everyone. I can’t breathe; my baby boy is just two years old and the sweetest child. I have been fighting so hard for my son.”
Maliek remains in critical condition at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell, suffering from multiple skull fractures and brain injuries.
Williams posted a heartbreaking photo of her son unconscious and intubated with a row of staples running from his right ear to the center of his shaved head.
On the right side of his head is a large white bandage with the words “no skull” on it.
“My baby has suffered from significant trauma to the brain that doctors don’t think he …. wll fully recover from,” Williams posted on Facebook. “They are trying to get the swelling down but the doctors don’t think he will be able to develop mentally.”
“My baby just started putting words together and calling me mama,” she added. “My baby was perfect so smart … How am I supposed to be strong I can’t accept any of this. I want my baby to wake up. Please I’m trying and I want help.”
Morrison’s arraignment in Queens Criminal Court was pending Wednesday.
In her Facebook post, Williams said that she had been in a custody battle with Morrison over their son.
“I tried to keep my son away from this man,” she wrote. “How could this happen to my baby (by) his own father?”
“(Maliek) cried every time he had to go with this man,” she said about Morrison. “Now my worse fear has become a reality.”
