Inset: Syied Epps (Lexington Police Department). Background: The residential street near where Epps killed his 9-month-old daughter in Lexington, Ky. (Google Maps).
A heart-wrenching case in Kentucky has concluded with a man being sentenced to more than 20 years in prison for a tragic act of violence that took the life of his infant daughter. Syied Epps, aged 31, will spend a significant portion of his life behind bars for the horrifying events that led to the death of his 9-month-old child, Sykia Epps, due to a severe brain injury.
In May of this year, Epps admitted to the murder charge related to domestic violence, acknowledging his role in the abuse that resulted in his daughter’s death in July 2023. As part of a plea agreement, prosecutors decided to drop an additional charge against Epps for being a persistent felony offender.
This week, the court handed down a 25-year prison sentence to Epps. In consideration of the time he has already served, nearly three years of pretrial detention will be counted towards his sentence.
The tragic events unfolded at a home on Whitney Avenue in Lexington. On July 26, 2023, young Sykia Epps was brought to a hospital suffering from life-threatening injuries. Local media, including Lexington’s CBS and The CW affiliate WKYT, reported on the case as details of the distressing incident came to light.
Less than a week later, Sykia was dead.
Initially, Epps was only charged with assault; the charge was upgraded to murder after she died from severe brain trauma.
During a preliminary hearing, a detective testified that other children in the residence witnessed the abuse that took the child’s life.
“All three stated that Mr. Epps had dropped their sister on her head,” Detective Paul Hogan testified, according to a courtroom report by WKYT. “One articulated that quote, ‘Daddy smashed her on her head really hard and she was upside down.'”
The defendant, for his part, first claimed he was not home at the time the incident occurred, according to law enforcement.
“He originally stated that the child was under the care of a babysitter named Eric,” the detective went on. “That was all the information he had. He couldn’t provide last name, phone number, anything other than a physical description.”
Eventually, however, Epps would admit that narrative was false – after surveillance footage showed him at home at the time in question.
The detective also said Epps expressed a certain level of animosity toward the children during an argument with their mother.
“He stated she needed to come get her ‘roaches,’ referring to the children, and that if she was one minute late from work, they would be waiting out on the porch,” Hogan said.
On Wednesday, Sykia’s mother spoke multiple times — before, during and after the man who killed her child was sentenced.
“I don’t get to see her no more,” Markettia Epps said through tears, according to a courtroom report by Lexington-based NBC affiliate WLEX. “I don’t get to hold her no more.”
At one point, it was the defendant’s turn to speak.
“I’m truly sorry for my actions, and I pray that one day they can find it in their heart to forgive me for the mistake that I’ve made,” the defendant said during his allocution. “I’m truly sorry.”
But Sykia’s mother rejected the apology.
“I hate you,” she shouted in response from the gallery. “You are cruel. You are not a father. You’re not a man. You’re not nothing. It wasn’t a mistake. You knew what you did to her.”
Later, the grieving mother took the stand herself.
“I have her ashes on my chest, Syied, our daughter is on my chest,” she said, addressing the defendant while holding the necklace containing her daughter’s cremated remains.
After sentencing, Markettia Epps criticized the court’s decision as too lenient.
“No, he deserves life,” she said. “What do you mean 25? I don’t have 25 with her, I only had nine months with her. The same thing that he did to her needs to happen to him. He don’t need no 25, he needs life.”