Mother and stepfather 'beat to death her seven-year-old son for not reading his Bible'

Markiece Palmer, 34, and Dina Palmer, 27, charged with murder in

Las Vegas

Seven-year-old Roderick in their care for three months after moving from Illinois where he lived with his grandmother and father



A seven-year-old boy has been beaten to death by his stepfather and mother for not reading his Bible, authorities said.



Markiece Palmer, 34, and Dina Palmer, 27, were charged with murder last week along with other counts of child abuse and neglect.



Roderick Arrington, seven, was taken to University Medical Center in Las Vegas last Thursday unconscious and with brain swelling. He died the following day.



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Beaten to death for not reading the Bible: Roderick Arrington, seven, was covered in bruises and open wounds when he was brought unconscious to hospital in Las Vegas where he later died

Second-grader Roderick recently moved to Las Vegas from Illinois, where he had been living with his father and grandmother.

Markiece Palmer told police he had spanked the child for lying about reading a Bible verse and failing to finish his homework. He said the boy then slipped and hit his head.

The arrest report details extensive injuries, including bruising over Roderick's whole body and open wounds on his buttocks, allegedly from being beaten with a belt. The police report also revealed that Roderick was violently shaken by his stepfather.



When the little boy was unresponsive last week, Dina Palmer called her pastor who advised her to dial 911.

Facing murder charges: The boy's stepfather Markiece Palmer, 34, and his mother Dina Palmer, 27, admitted repeated beating the boy with a belt and paddle

Tragic: Seven-year-old Roderick died in hospital after being admitted with brain swelling and covered in bruises

Dina Palmer told police that she had repeatedly hit her son with a paddle and belt last month, what she described as 'whoopins'.



The couple admitted to police that they had regularly beaten the child for not reading the Bible or finishing his homework.

