A 34-year-old woman from Wisconsin is currently under arrest in connection with the death of her 3-year-old son. The severity of the child’s injuries led authorities to conclude that the perpetrator demonstrated a “total disregard for human life.” The woman, identified as Zaquitta Joiner-Murphy, faces charges of child neglect resulting in death, following the tragic demise of her son, Da’Quarius Berry, according to court records.
Joiner-Murphy called 911 for medical assistance for her son at her North 29th Street residence, just before 7 a.m. on November 6. She told investigators that she found her son unresponsive and not breathing after she returned from dropping her other four children at the school bus stop. She claimed to have left the house around 6:30 a.m. and was away for about 10 minutes. Upon her return, she discovered her son lying on his back, with foam coming out of his mouth.
Joiner-Murphy insisted that Da’Quarius had no previous injuries or medical conditions that could explain his state when she returned home. Emergency medical personnel rushed Da’Quarius to Children’s Wisconsin’s Emergency Department. Despite the doctors’ best efforts to revive him for nearly an hour, they were unable to resuscitate the boy, who was pronounced dead around 8:41 a.m.
Medical staff found a large hemorrhage in Da’Quarius’s abdomen, which they concluded was the result of non-accidental trauma. The injuries sustained by Da’Quarius suggested that the person responsible acted with complete disregard for human life.
Joiner-Murphy informed police that Da’Quarius woke up around 5:45 a.m. that day and seemed normal. She said she left him with her boyfriend while she took the other children to the bus. She also mentioned that a friend named “Peaches,” who lived in the apartment above, would sometimes care for the children when she was working at night. However, Peaches denied being in charge of the children on the evening of November 5 and the morning of November 6.
In a later interview, Joiner-Murphy changed parts of her story. She admitted that on the night of November 5, she and her boyfriend left the children alone at home while they went out for food. They returned briefly but left again around 1:30 a.m. On the morning of November 6, she found Da’Quarius asleep on the couch after returning from the store. After showering, she discovered that his body was limp and his mouth was filled with foamy mucus, which led her boyfriend to call 911.
The investigation into Da’Quarius’s death is still underway. Currently, Joiner-Murphy is one of two suspects who had the opportunity to inflict the blunt force trauma on Da’Quarius. The investigation also revealed that she left her five children unattended from midnight on November 5, 2025, until 5:45 a.m. on November 6, 2025.
Joiner-Murphy is currently being held in the Milwaukee County Jail on a $50,000 cash-only bond. She is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on November 21.