“Although Joani has not died yet, she might as well be dead because she has little brain activity and quite frankly, no quality of life,” then assistant prosecutor Tracey Ballard Tangeman wrote in a 2011 sentencing memo.
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“She will live the remainder of her life lying in a bed, being fed through a tube, depending on total strangers for every need, and missing out on all that life had to offer her.”
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Joani died at Dayton Children’s Hospital, and her obituary indicates the funeral and burial is Wednesday in Celina. Her mother could not be reached for comment.
Marcus A. Merrick, 35, her father, is serving a 10-year sentence in Chillicothe Correctional Institution for child endangering and felonious assault. He pleaded no contest and was found guilty in 2011.
Even though several years have passed, prosecutors could still indict Merrick for more crimes. At Merrick’s plea hearing, prosecutors said they may pursue murder charges.
On Friday, Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office spokesman Greg Flannagan said, “We’ve been notified of the death of Joani, and what we’ll need to do next is we need to get the autopsy report. We’ll have to review that and then probably meet with the Kettering Police Department to determine if Merrick should face any additional charges.”
Merrick is not scheduled to be released until May 4, 2021, giving prosecutors time to bring additional charges.
It “was always a point that we wanted to make that we reserved” the right to prosecute Merrick further, Flannagan said.
Charges possible years later
Flannagan said there is precedent for considering more charges years after victims die.
Sean Powers, 40, was convicted in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court of attempted murder and other charges for the 2009 shooting of Deon Ramey.
Ramey, who was paralyzed after being shot several times by Powers, died in 2012 at age 24. Flannagan said Powers — whose prison term is listed to end May 3, 2026 — still could be indicted.
Prosecutors filed a pending case in 2012 and may address more charges closer to when Powers nears the end of his prison sentence.
Injuries were from different days
Joani’s mother was asleep in her apartment, 1235 Imperial Blvd., the morning of May 8, 2011, and Merrick was caring for the child, Kettering police said at the time. The mother called 911 just after 9 a.m. because Joani was having difficulty breathing.
Police and medics responded and took Joani to the hospital, where doctors found evidence of brain trauma, according to police reports.
Joani’s injuries included healing fractures and recent fractures to multiple ribs along with two broken legs, and both acute and chronic subdural hematomas or brain bleeds, according to prosecutors. Evidence showed that injuries were inflicted on different dates.
“The defendant in this case admitted to police that he strangled his 3-month-old baby and also possibly shook her on at least two different occasions,” Tangeman wrote.
Case ‘utterly unimaginable’
In denying Merrick’s “wholly frivolous” appeal, the 2nd District Court of Appeals wrote that, “Merrick’s actions toward his daughter resulted in potential irreversible brain damage, seizures, hearing loss, mental retardation, learning disabilities and paralysis.”
Merrick’s defense attorney, John M. Scott Jr., wrote that his client showed genuine remorse for the pain and injuries suffered by Joani.
“Further, he takes comfort in knowing that his daughter’s life was saved by the doctors already and that she was not allowed to die as some have expressed that they seem to prefer,” Scott wrote in a 2011 sentencing memo. “While (Joani) certainly will have tremendous struggles in the road ahead, she has the hope, dreams, prayers and remorse of her father.”
‘A courageous survivor’
In her obituary, Joani was called “a courageous survivor” of the effects of Shaken Baby Syndrome. “Her smile would light up a room, and the inspiration she gave will be greatly missed by all who knew her,” the obituary said.
Prosecutors in 2011 advocated a 16-year sentence, but then-Judge Frances McGee sentenced Merrick to four years on one count and six on the other to be served consecutively.
“The defendant robbed her of even the possibility of a normal life,” Tangeman wrote in 2011. “To say it is tragic is an understatement of the first order. It is utterly unimaginable and unjust.”
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