Hayden Edward Vickers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Remembering Hayden

At two, Hayden should have been surrounded by the ordinary chaos of toddlerhood—learning new words, playing, exploring and becoming a little more independent every day. Instead, the surviving public record focuses overwhelmingly on the violence that ended his life. But Hayden was not simply the two year old at the center of a criminal case. He was a little boy first. He had a father and a great grandmother who would later speak publicly about the severity of the injuries inflicted upon him.

Hayden deserved the chance to grow beyond two years old and become the person he was only beginning to be.

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Hayden's Story

On the morning of February 18, 2011, Abilene police responded to a call concerning an injured child.

That child was Hayden.  Hayden was initially transported to Hendrick Medical Center in Abilene. His condition was so serious that he was then flown by helicopter to Cook Children's Hospital in Fort Worth for additional treatment. Doctors determined that Hayden's injuries were consistent with abusive head trauma. Franklin Ramey Jr., Hayden's mother's boyfriend, had been the only adult present when Hayden was injured. Ramey's initial explanation was that the two-year-old had fallen from a bed. But as police investigated, that explanation began to unravel. Ramey eventually admitted that he had shaken Hayden, slapped him in the head and face, and thrown him onto a bed. Hayden's injuries were devastating. According to Hayden's father and great-grandmother, the little boy had been struck in the head with such force that his retina detached, and they described what appeared to be the imprint of a fist on his skull. Hayden remained critically injured at Cook Children's Hospital.

Doctors could not save him. At approximately 2:30 p.m. on February 19, 2011, Hayden Edward Vickers was pronounced dead.

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Justice for Hayden

Investigators focused on Franklin Ramey Jr., who had been caring for Hayden when the toddler suffered his fatal injuries. Ramey also had a criminal history predating Hayden's death. Records cited on Hayden's original memorial page describe previous convictions that included burglary of a habitation, unlawfully carrying a weapon, and assault causing bodily injury. He was reportedly on parole at the time of Hayden's death. The case ultimately ended with a plea agreement.

Rather than being convicted of a homicide offense, Franklin Ramey Jr. pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of injury to a child. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

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Person convicted: Franklin Ramey Jr.
Relationship to Hayden: Mother's boyfriend
Conviction: Injury to a child
Sentence: 30 years in prison

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Forever Remembered

Hayden lived for two years, two months and 27 days. The details preserved about his final hours are brutal. A two year old child suffered catastrophic head injuries while alone with an adult responsible for caring for him. The explanation that Hayden simply fell from a bed did not hold.

The adult caring for him eventually admitted shaking him, striking his head and face, and throwing him onto a bed. Hayden's injuries were so severe that he had to be flown to a children's hospital more than 150 miles away in an attempt to save his life. Those details deserve to remain part of Hayden's story because what happened to abused children should not become softer simply because years have passed. But the violence is not all that deserves to survive. So does Hayden. His name was Hayden Edward Vickers. He should have had a third birthday. He should have started school, made friends, discovered things he loved and had years to become his own person. Instead, nearly everything that remains publicly available about Hayden describes the final day of his life. Abuse Angels preserves his name alongside the truth of what happened to him so that Hayden is not reduced to an old criminal case or a statistic about child abuse. He was a child.