Nationwide — Zevaya Flanagan, a 2-year-old African American girl from Houston, Texas, tragically died when her father, Deontray, strangled and beat her during a police chase. The tragedy unfolded while Zevaya’s mother and grandfather witnessed the horrific act through a FaceTime call.
Deontray’s actions were streamed on FaceTime as Zevaya’s mother, Kairsten Watson, and her grandfather, Curtis Watson, desperately tried to talk him down.
In court, Curtis recounted how Deontray showed them the child’s lifeless body, saying, “I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. To have to go through that type of anguish and pain.”
Prior to the tragic incident, Kairsten had repeatedly warned authorities multiple times about Flanagan’s threats against her and her daughter, but her concerns were dismissed.
“I told [the authorities] over and over and over that something was going to be wrong,” she said. “They could have at least tried to find him, but even with his past, no. I said, ‘Are y’all going to wait until something happens to her?'”
She had even shown authorities messages where Flanagan threatened harm, but they did not take action until it was too late. She said, “They didn’t believe me. They thought I was just making this up, and he was the father.”
Deontray has now been convicted of capital murder. His sentencing deliberations began earlier this month.