The letters, penned by little Aaron Benjamin Jr.’s aunt and grandmother ahead of his killer’s sentencing on Thursday, are heartbreaking in their sorrow at a promising young life cut short with a brutality they say is impossible to fathom.
Jamila Benjamin, Aaron’s aunt and the sister of his father, and Faybelle Forde, his grandmother, wrote the victim statements imploring Judge Harold Willocks to impose the maximum penalty possible when he sentences Kyle Christopher on Nov. 2 in Superior Court on St. Croix. Their letters were entered into the court docket on Thursday.
Christopher, the onetime boyfriend of Aaron’s mother, agreed to plead guilty to one count of aggravated child abuse and neglect just days before his trial was to begin in August. He had faced seven counts including first-degree murder, child abuse, child neglect and third-degree assault.
Aaron’s mother, Delicia Daniel, is currently serving a 20-year sentence after taking a plea deal in which she pleaded guilty to a single charge of child abuse in October 2021.
AJ, as Aaron was known to his family, was just shy of 5 years old when he was beaten to death by Christopher, apparently for drinking from his sister’s juice box, according to police reports. He was buried on what would have been his fifth birthday.
First responders found the child unresponsive on the bathroom floor of an apartment at the Lorraine Village housing community on St. Croix on Oct. 11, 2019, after receiving a 911 call. They tried to administer CPR but were unsuccessful, according to reports at the time.
AJ was found to have died of blunt force trauma and, according to police and court reports, was malnourished, had bruises on his nose, a lump on his right cheek, bruises on his back and his butt cheeks, and scars on his butt cheeks, some black and some lighter.
Christopher, then 22, and Daniel, then 29, were arrested about a week after AJ’s death and were each held on $1 million bail.
In their letters to the court, the child’s aunt and grandmother tell of their grief, pain and anger at his death, and their hope for a just sentence.
While the aggravated child abuse and neglect charge carries a prison term of five to 30 years, according to Christopher’s plea agreement, it also states that “all parties assert that no one has made any promises in connection with this matter,” and that “each party reserves their respective rights of allocution at sentencing,” meaning they may address the court on matters that could affect the penalty handed down.
In particular, Jamila Benjamin addressed her anger at apparent failures in the government’s social safety net, noting that AJ’s father tried to get custody of his son and daughter after notifying Human Services that he feared they were being abused, to no avail.
“My brother did the legal thing going through Human Service to get custody of his children. He fought hard. We all did. When the law is supposed to be on your side, it FAILS. They FAILED AJ, they FAILED his sister (Azariah), they FAILED his father (Aaron Benjamin), they FAILED the community. Now look at the outcome,” she wrote.
According to reports at the time, AJ’s father said that he had previously contacted Human Services with concerns about his son’s welfare. In the months after the child’s death the department conducted an internal audit to find out what went wrong.
Then-Commissioner Kimberley Causey-Gomez said in January 2020 that while the audit showed no negligence by department staff, it did show weaknesses in its structure and policies.
Beyond additional training for staff, “Technical assistance is underway to complete a review of the Virgin Islands statutory Children’s Policy, in an effort to identify areas in need of federal compliance as a vehicle to inform needed upgrades to the local practice model for child welfare,” she said at the time.
This would include establishing a Child Fatality Review Panel of multiagency experts to facilitate expeditious, transparent and ongoing assessment and investigation of incidences to help aid in prevention, she said.
That’s no comfort to the family, the letters reveal.
Benjamin recounted how AJ protected his sister, even though she was older, and noted that even four years after his death, the little girl continues to have nightmares along with outbursts of anger.
“AJ was an energetic 4yrs old, about to be 5, when his life was taken from our family in a vicious attack against an innocent child. No matter the reason, a child should never have to live in fear when a parent is supposed to be there to LOVE and PROTECT them,” Benjamin wrote.
“I will forever remember what he took from us. While he is still in the land of the living and breathing, my nephew is no longer. This is the hardest truth to face,” she said. “I can go on and on; however, I am trusting that given the nature of this case my nephew’s killer receives the maximum time that is provide, without parole.”
Likewise, his grandmother told in her letter how hard it is to live with the circumstances of his death, and their unimaginable loss.
“AJ as he is known to our family and friends was my 4-year-old innocent grandson. He was ripped from our hearts in the most horrifying manner, he was bitten, he was burned, he was cut, he was starved, he was beaten, he was tortured, and he was Bludgeon to Death! The monstrous animal to carry out such heinous acts should never be allowed to walk this earth or breathe the same air that we breathe. He left a hole in our heart that will never be filled,” Forde told the judge.
“AJ was a bright, vibrant soul, a child full of dreams and potential. His laughter filled our home, and his innocence was a beacon of hope in our lives. However, that light was cruelly extinguished, and our world has plunged into darkness. The pain we feel is immeasurable, a chasm of sorrow that threatens to consume us entirely. We will never see him graduate and go off to college. We would never see him get married and have a family of his own. The world would never experience the impact I know AJ would have brought to this island and to this world,” said Forde.
“Every day, we grapple with the tormenting questions of ‘why’ and ‘how’ this could have happened to our innocent AJ. He loved school; he loved to read and write. One of my favorite memories of AJ is when he fixed his older sister’s bike so that she could ride it. His older sister Azaria was so ecstatic that she gave him a big hug that made him laugh. Oh, how I missed that sweet funny laugh. AJ was such a happy, smart joyful child. He was a child who brightened any room he entered. Children expect nothing but love and care but in AJ’s case he suffered unthinkable cruelty by the hands of a monster,” Forde wrote.
She implored Willocks to impose a fitting sentence — not out of revenge, but to make sure what happened to AJ never happens again.
“Your Honor, our family’s plea for justice is not born out of vengeance but out of the necessity to ensure that no other child suffers the same fate as AJ. We have faith in the legal system, and we implore you to consider the magnitude of our loss when delivering your verdict. We yearn for closure and justice for AJ,” said Forde.
“In your hands, Judge Willocks, lies the power to bring solace to our shattered hearts and to send a message that such heinous acts will not go unpunished. We ask you to weigh the evidence carefully, to deliberate with vigor and JUSTICE. We implore you to remember the innocence and potential that AJ once embodied. May your decision reflect the gravity of this tragedy and serve as a beacon of hope for a safer, more just world for all children,” his grandmother said.
