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Citing insufficient scientific evidence, Kosciusko County Prosecutor Charles R. Waggoner filed a motion this morning to dismiss a murder charge against Sherrie L. Cusick.
Cusick, 34, of 11749 Pied Piper Parkway, Cromwell, was charged in the Nov. 23, 1996, death of Anthony Cusick, her 7-year-old stepson. The child died in a fire in the Cusick home. Anthony was allegedly playing with matches in a closet and died from smoke inhalation. Cusick was charged after a Feb. 3, 1998, grand jury returned an indictment against her.
Evidence from Anthony's death suggested foul play, authorities said, because no matches were found in the closet in which Anthony's body was found and the burn pattern in the closet is said to be consistent with an unconscious child. Also, the closet door was not locked, obstructed or otherwise barricaded to prevent his exit, according to court documents.
However, at the conclusion Tuesday of depositions taken from John E. Pless, M.D., professor of forensic pathology at Indiana University School of Medicine, Waggoner decided to seek dismissal of the charge.
Earlier this year, a murder charge resulting from the Aug. 12, 1996, death of 4-year-old Kaelie Cusick also was dismissed.
Kaelie died after a fall down the stairs at Cusick home. Authorities originally ruled Kaelie's death accidental. The child was reportedly playing dress-up and became entangled in a sheet before tumbling down a flight of stairs and breaking her neck. However, two forensic experts reviewed X-rays and other documentation from Kaelie's death investigation and reportedly determined that the child did not suffer a broken neck. The doctors, a forensic pathologist from Minnesota and a forensic radiologist from Alabama, concurred that the child died from a blunt force trauma to the back of the head, officials said.
Kaelie's body was ordered exhumed in March after those reports. But dismissal of the murder charge related to Kaelie's death came one week after the exhumation and two days after an autopsy was performed on Kaelie's remains.
The same grand jury initially indicted Cusick in Anthony's death but failed to indict her in Kaelie's death. The murder charge in Kaelie's case was filed several months later by former prosecutor, David Kolbe, after an ongoing investigation was further developed and after reports from the radiologist and pathologist.
Both cases were dismissed "without prejudice," which means that the state reserves the right to refile the case at a later date. Cusick's court-appointed attorney, Mike Reed, said after the first case was dismissed that he didn't anticipate the case being reopened.
A statement released from Reed's office this morning said: "We are, or course, pleased with this outcome and feel that Mrs. Cusick has been vindicated entirely. Given the evidence, we think that Mr. Waggoner has done the right thing. It is truly a shame that Sherrie and her family have had to go through this nearly three-year ordeal on top of the tragedies which this family has endured."
Waggoner's press release also cited the fact that the state and defense teams conducted additional medical tests and took depositions of expert medical witnesses prior to making the decision to dismiss the case.
"At this time,there is insufficient scientific evidence to take this case to trial. As with any unusual death, the investigators will continue to look for further evidence which could shed light on how Anthony's death occurred."
