Brayden Paul Robertson was 5 months old the last time his parents saw him alive. They dropped him off at Tender Years Preschool & Nursery in Demopolis, Alabama, but a few hours later, they received a call no parent should ever have to take. His mother, Taylor Robertson, rushed to his side after hearing her son was unresponsive. When she arrived, she saw his lifeless body and knew her life would never be the same again.
Taylor Robertson and her husband, Paul Robertson, told WSFA they could never have imagined their son’s life would have been cut so short. But soon after his death, Versa Mae Simmons, 68, was arrested and charged with murder after allegedly beating the infant to death. Now, his parents are speaking out so no other family ever has to experience this type of tragedy.
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Taylor Robertson received the fateful call on March 25.
Brayden had just turned 5 months old a few days before his death. His parents told WSFA that their son was perfectly healthy when they dropped him off at day care. The center called Taylor Robertson that afternoon, however, and said the baby was “unresponsive.” A coworker drove her to Tender Years within three minutes, and she saw a devastating sight.
”I saw his lifeless body on the changing table as they were trying to do life-saving measures,” she said.
He was taken to Whitfield Memorial Hospital, but hospital staff could not revive him and he died a short time later, per the Demopolis Times. His body was taken to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, where an autopsy was performed, and his death was deemed a homicide.
The couple had reportedly approached the day care about marks on Brayden’s skin before his death.
The day care was quick to dismiss the family’s concerns. Paul Robertson told WSFA he and his wife had noticed scratches, but staff at Tender Years gave an explanation. “We were told that he scratched himself with his paci clip or his fingernails,” he said.
But now, they wonder if it was just Brayden scratching himself or something more sinister.
“He didn’t have a voice. He couldn’t tell me ‘Momma, I don’t want to go here.’ Every afternoon he would light up when we would go pick him up, either one, and of course you just think that’s your baby excited to see you,” she said. “But now as a mother, it makes me wonder, are you so excited because I’m finally taking you away from something that you don’t like,” WSFA reported.
The Robertsons' life will never be the same.
The mourning couple told WSFA that Brayden had a smile that could light up the room, and his big sister just adored him.
“The brightest smile, the prettiest smile and his laugh. He had this little squeal when he laughed and it was my absolute favorite,” Taylor Robertson said.
She added that the family is heartbroken and would turn back time if they could.
”We would do anything in this world to have our perfect baby boy back,” the mother said.
Investigators quickly named a suspect.
Simmons allegedly beat Brayden to death, authorities say. According to court documents obtained by WSFA, the woman killed the infant and abused him “on more than one occasion, by willfully abusing, cruelly beating, or otherwise willfully maltreating.”
His parents called her a "monster," the news outlet reported. ”Monsters come in all shapes and sizes and people you never would think, so don’t be fooled,” Taylor Robertson warned.
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Video surveillance footage reportedly helped pin the killing on Simmons.
According to the Demopolis Times, police obtained a warrant on March 29 and secured video surveillance from inside the day care center, which led to Simmons’ arrest.
She was taken to the Marengo County Detention Center, where she was being held on a $1 million bond, per WFSA. Tender Years Preschool & Nursery surrendered its license on April 19.
