Murder charge: Boyfriend burned, battered girlfriend's toddler in Maplewood apartment

A man burned and battered his girlfriend's 17-month-old daughter, eventually killing her, in a Maplewood apartment while the child's mother was at work, according to a murder charge filed Thursday.

Terrance V. Leslie, 26, was charged in Ramsey County District Court with second-degree murder in connection with the death Tuesday night of Jamari Hne, the daughter of his 18-year-old girlfriend.

"Words cannot fully capture my feelings about what happened to this innocent and helpless young child," County Attorney John Choi said in a statement. "But know this: We will unrelentingly seek justice for her."

Leslie, whose criminal history spans half of his life, remains jailed in lieu of $2 million bail ahead of a court appearance Friday. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

An autopsy revealed that Jamari's injuries included bleeding in the brain and burns to her face, neck, shoulder and arm. Doctors also found injuries to several of her internal organs, the complaint read. Evidence of sexual assault was also detected.

Video on Leslie's phone shot by him earlier that day showed him becoming angry over Jamari's crying and him yelling at her as he documented her injuries, according to the complaint.

Jamari's mother was also arrested at the same time as Leslie, but she was released early Thursday afternoon without being charged. Police say she is no longer considered a suspect in Jamari's death.

According to the complaint:

Police and paramedics arrived at the apartment and immediately saw Jamari's fresh burns. She was "extremely lethargic and unresponsive," the complaint read.

Leslie and Jamari's mother told police at the scene that he had been watching Jamari for the day while she went to work.

He told police that Jamari fell into a tub containing hot water while he left her momentarily to tend to his dog. He said he then called his girlfriend after seeing that Jamari's skin was badly burned.

However, officers saw that "everything in the [bathroom] appeared completely dry," the complaint continued. Jamari's burn marks were also inconsistent with Leslie's version of events.

The mother said Leslie called her between 4 and 5 p.m. with the account of Jamari falling into the tub of hot water and being burned.

Medics rushed Jamari to the hospital, where she died shortly before 10 p.m. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner's Office ruled that Jamari died as the result of an assault and classified her death as a homicide.

The mother said she and Leslie have been dating for two or three months and have been living together for the past several weeks. She said Leslie has been physically abusive toward her, including while she was holding Jamari, leading to injury to the girl.

A law enforcement search of Leslie's phone turned up incriminating and "disturbing images" of Jamari that make it appear that he was documenting her many injuries.

Court records show Leslie pleaded guilty to illegal weapons possession in connection with the shooting of a man during a 2016 armed robbery in north Minneapolis. Attempted murder charges were dropped as part of the plea agreement. He received a 7 ¹⁄₂-year sentence, was released from prison four years later and put on supervised release until August 2023.

He also has a criminal history as a juvenile that goes back to when he was 12 or 13 and includes being found guilty of threats of violence and gun possession, Thursday's complaint noted.