A man who was charged with murder after letting his 10-month-old baby die of malnutrition has admitted to calling his lawyer before calling 911 when we found his deceased daughter.

Tatiana Elena Fusari and Seth Michael Welch were charged with felony murder and first-degree child abuse in the death of their daughter, Mary, just last August. They admitted that they knew she was skinny and sick, but that they didn’t seek help because of “religious reasons.”

The trial is ongoing, and just two days ago Welch’s 911 call was played in court. It revealed some interesting things, including that he called his attorney before calling police.

In a 911 call that was played in court Wednesday, Welch calls Kent County and tells the dispatcher that one of his children is dead. When the dispatcher asks why he thinks that, he says, “I have no idea. We just woke up and she’s dead.” The dispatcher goes on to ask Welch what he is observing and he says the child isn’t breathing and there isn’t a heartbeat. Then the dispatcher asks Welch how long ago he found Mary and he says “about an hour and a half. I called my lawyer…to ask what’s the best thing I can do, and they said wait until they’re here to call police…I was waiting on legal counsel.” In the call, Welch says he put Mary to bed at 3 p.m. on the day before and then first went to check on her at about 10 a.m. the next day. The dispatcher asked again about the delay and then asked if Welch thought the child was beyond help when he found her. “Oh yeah,” Welch told the dispatcher. “She was dead as a doornail.”

This entire interaction is filled with red flags. If I woke up to find my child dead, I know the very first thing I’d do is call 911. It took him an hour and a half, and he called his lawyer first, presumably to save his own skin.

The next part of the call that stands out to me is the callous description of his own daughter as “dead as a doornail.” This isn’t how you tell the police about discovering your daughter’s lifeless body. That’s how you talk about a plant, or something that holds less value to you.

This case is horrific, but I’m glad the facts are coming out. Maybe this little girl will get justice, and these parents will be held accountable.

Yours in Reason,

David G. McAfee (Support my work here)