Police: Detroit girl, 3, fatally abused in South Carolina

Tom Greenwood / The Detroit News

Summerville, S.C. -- Police have charged a local woman with homicide by child abuse in the death of a 3-year-old Detroit girl who had been left in her care.

Summerville police had declined to name the victim, but news sources have identified her as Serenity Richardson. Police have arrested and charged Erica Mae Butts, 23, of Summerville in the investigation.

Initial reports said the girl -- the daughter of Detroit resident Ieshia Richardson -- had been beaten and burned to death.

"We are not releasing the cause of death, but I can tell you that she was not burned to death," said Capt. Jon Rogers of the Summerville Police Department. "The victim lived out of state and is not related to the suspect."

According to Rogers, police and EMS were called to a townhouse complex on Tuesday evening after receiving a call that a child wasn't breathing.

"First responders took the child to the Summerville Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead," Rogers said.

According to news reports, Serenity had been left with a family friend in Summerville while her mother moved in Detroit. Police said they haven't had any previous contact with Butts, who remains in custody after being denied bond.

Summerville, a city of about 45,000, is located near Charleston.

tgreenwood@detnews.com (313) 222-2023