Day-Care Operator Tells Detective She Taped Boy’s Mouth
Jurors heard an audio recording Wednesday in which Vicki Leigh Chiles admitted putting masking tape over the mouth of a 2-year-old boy at her Tulsa day-care home.
Chiles, who is on trial for first-degree murder, said she used the tape as a "last resort" in dealing with the toddler, Joshua Minton, on May 17.
"I couldn’t calm him," said Chiles, who referred to Joshua by the nickname of "Bubba" and said he "loved me."
Chiles told Tulsa Police Detective Scott Murphy that she left the tape over Joshua’s mouth for "maybe three minutes."
She indicated that she had also taped his hands.
The Sperry child was found unresponsive at the day-care home, 2648 E. Third St., and died later that day at a hospital.
A medical examiner ruled the death a homicide and reported that the 30-month-old boy had excess fluid in his brain and lungs because of an airway obstruction.
An eight-woman, five-man jury — which includes one alternate — was seated Tuesday in Tulsa County District Judge Clancy Smith’s
courtroom.
Some of Chiles’ soft-spoken, recorded responses to Murphy’s questions were hard to hear in the courtroom gallery.
One reply from Murphy to Chiles indicated that Chiles had said she felt like "scum" for hurting the boy.
The first witness was Joshua’s mother, Kathryn Minton, who said that when she left Joshua and his older sister at the day care on the morning of May 17, Joshua was "acting normally" and "wasn’t sick."
Joshua was his usual playful self, she said.
Minton testified that Chiles telephoned her about 2:15 p.m. to say that she had found Joshua unresponsive and that she had tried to resuscitate him and had called 911.
The mother experienced an emotional moment as she told jurors about seeing her son at a Tulsa hospital.
"I got to stay with him until he passed away," Minton said. "I got all that time with him. They let me hold him until he died."
She said her son had marks on his face that were not there when she dropped him off at the defendant’s day care.
Jason Barrett, an EMSA paramedic who was dispatched to the day care about 2 p.m., said that when he saw Joshua, the child was not breathing and "had no signs of life."
Police Cpl. Gene Watkins testified that investigators discovered masking tape beneath some blankets at the day care and "it appeared someone had been wrapped up in it."
Chiles indicated during her May 17 interview with Murphy that she was with seven children at the day care that afternoon.
Joshua was making noise and being fussy, she told Murphy.
The detective testified that Chiles was cooperative, and he said the interview "was not done in a forceful manner or an intimidating manner or a threatening manner."
Chiles, 43, remains in the Tulsa Jail.
In a separate case not at issue in this trial, she faces a charge of abuse of a minor child at her day-care home.
That case involves allegations that she inflicted injuries when she struck an 8-year-old boy on his back, neck and arms with a fly swatter on April 10, 2007 — about five weeks before Joshua’s death.
The death prompted the Department of Human Services to review its policies regarding how quickly it can move to serve emergency orders at day-care facilities.
Testimony will resume Thursday, and Smith told jurors that they might also begin deliberations Thursday.
The punishment options for first-degree murder in this case are life in prison with or without the possibility of parole.
Bill Braun 581-8455 bill.braun@tulsaworld.com
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