JUSTICE for KAIRISSA MARK

Dr. Deborah Mark, a pediatrician, of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, is charged with first degree murder and multiple counts of child abuse in connection to the death of her four-year-old daughter, Kairissa Mark, in July 2010. Steven Mark is charged with multiple counts of child abuse. Kairissa was adopted from China. Less than 90 days after the Marks adopted her, she was dead. Kairissa had severe bruising and Mt. Juliet police said the case of child abuse was one of the worst they had seen.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Four-year-old Kairissa Mark was locked in closets, placed in boxes and lost teeth

Prosecutors say a 4 year old from China was locked in closets, placed in boxes and lost teeth after her parents pryed her mouth open to brush her teeth. Those are just some of the disturbing details from the murder trial of Deborah Mark, according to WZTV FOX17.

"She flung her on the bed and she hit her head on the wall," says Lebanon Police Department's Bonnie Harris.

Kairissa died of head trauma at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital after Steven Mark called 911 when she stopped breathing. They say the child had been unresponsive and bleeding from her mouth for 24 hours but her parents didn't seek medical attention.

According to prosecutors, Deborah Mark and her husband routinely pinched and pulled Kairissa's nipples and inner thigh as a form of punishment. But they say Deborah is responsible for the head injury that caused her death.