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Davis, left, and Booker
A couple, both accused of the aggravated sexual assault of a child in their care that resulted in the birth of a baby, appeared before Jefferson County Criminal District Court Judge John Stevens on April 1, for announcement hearings.
Joshua Booker, 32, of Beaumont, and Danielle Davis, 30, of Port Arthur, both currently reside in the Jefferson County Jail on charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, which resulted in the pregnancy of a child younger than the age of 14.
According to the affidavit for their arrest, Beaumont Police Department (BPD) Detective Frank Coffin III was dispatched to The Medical Center of Southeast Texas on Aug. 12, 2022, in reference to a 12-year-old who had just given birth. The baby was delivered, doctors believed, at approximately 37-38 weeks’ gestation, estimating conception occurred around the first week of December 2021.
During the investigation, the juvenile’s family members reported that the male who impregnated her was an adult family friend/cousin; however, Child Protective Services (CPS) the investigator advised Coffin of inconsistencies with the family’s account and that she was leery of this, and suspected Booker to be the father of the child.
The child mother was later interviewed at the Garth House and, according to the detective, it was clear that the victim had been coached.
Davis, who was legally responsible for the safety of the victim, later responded to the police department to speak with detectives. At first, Davis denied knowing the juvenile was pregnant or even who could have been the father. Davis later admitted to detectives that Booker was the father and she had not notified the authorities because, if Booker was arrested, Davis would have lost his income, as the two were partners.
Davis advised the detective that she knew Booker had been sexually assaulting the juvenile approximately two months prior to the juvenile getting pregnant because the victim had made an outcry to her. Davis stated that she instructed the juvenile to lie to investigators about her outcry that Booker had been sexually assaulting her and fathered her child.
Davis reportedly made no attempt to protect the juvenile she was legally obligated to protect.
Booker’s DNA was collected and matched as the father of the victim’s infant child.
“Just when you think humanity cannot get to a lower level, they dig deeper into the ground and seek a lower level of existence…we’re talking about a 12-year-old giving birth and no one coming forward with the truth on how the child became impregnated,” Stevens observed, and scheduled subsequent hearings for update.
Booker’s court-appointed attorney, Donald Duesler, advised Judge Stevens that his client wished to have a trial separate from Davis.