By Kevin Hanson, The Courier-Herald
Disturbing details surrounding the repeated assaults on a 7-month-old girl came to light last week, following the arrest of an Enumclaw man who was the live-in boyfriend of the infant's mother.
Joshua Folk, 18, was charged April 20 with first-degree assault of a child and transported to the Regional Justice Center in Kent. He is being held on $500,000 bail, awaiting a May 3 arraignment.
The intrigue built a day later when Enumclaw police arrested 19-year-old Kayla Oakley, the little girl's mother. She was booked on charges of third-degree criminal mistreatment and rendering criminal assistance.
According to documents filed in King County Superior Court, Folk admitted to Enumclaw police "that on five separate occasions…he violently assaulted the baby girl."
The situation began the morning of April 13, when young Angelina Marie Oakley (born Aug. 27, 2003) was taken to Enumclaw Community Hospital by her mother, grandparents and Folk. Oakley told police she had noticed her baby's leg was swollen and her arms "looked funny" that morning. Oakley called her mother, who arrived at the Warner Avenue apartment and drove everyone to the hospital.
Hospital staff recognized the severity of the baby's injuries and notified Enumclaw police. After X-rays were taken, and it was determined the girl had suffered 11 broken bones, the child was airlifted to Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle. There, she underwent emergency surgery for her injuries.
According to an Enumclaw Police Department press release, Oakley was arrested because, "She witnessed her fiance…violently assault her baby, and did not intervene in any way." Additionally, she failed to seek medical aid for the baby for 10 to 11 hours, "thus placing her child in greater harm and increasing the severity of the injuries."
Finally, investigators maintain, Oakley lied to police to protect Folk.
At first, innocence maintained
After the infant was transported to Seattle, Oakley insisted on taking a polygraph to prove her innocence, according to court documents. When questioned by an Enumclaw detective, Folk also agreed to a polygraph (commonly known as a lie-detector test). Police told the pair they had scheduled exams for the following day.
On April 14, both Oakley and Folk failed to appear for their scheduled polygraph exams. An officer went to their apartment that night, where both claimed they had been too sick to attend.
Officers returned to the couple's apartment a day later and spoke with Oakley, who was alone at the time. According to court papers, Oakley said "she trusted Josh and loved him and believed he was innocent until proven guilty."
After Folk arrived, he spoke outdoors with Det. Steve Robinson, relating his distrust of the police. Sitting in an unmarked police car, Folk told detectives he had received counseling for anger management and admitted to having a "short temper," adding no one had taught him to control his rage.
All the while, Folk maintained his innocence. Oakley, too, was telling police she didn't know how the injuries occurred.
The story changes
On April 19, Det. Heidi Hoffman received a phone call at home, learning Folk and his aunt were in the police station lobby, wanting to talk.
At the time, Folk was in a nearby room, talking with Lt. Eric Sortland. Sortland advised Folk of his Constitutional rights and told Folk it appeared some of his earlier comments weren't truthful. Folk admitted he had lied and began telling how, and why, he had assaulted the child.
Folk said on five occasions, beginning at 10:30 a.m. and over the span of perhaps 12 hours, he had physically assaulted the baby. Three times, Folk said, he swung the infant by the arms before slamming her to the floor; twice, he added, he lifted the baby to his shoulders before throwing her to the floor.
Explaining his actions, Folk said he could not stand to hear the baby crying. The wailing, he said, made him angry.
After again being advised of his rights, Folk told his story while being recorded. Police then asked Jon Funfar, the city's communications specialist, to come to the station with a video camera. Wearing a microphone, Folk re-enacted how he had assaulted the baby, narrating as he went.
During his fourth assault on the child, Folk said, Oakley was outside smoking a cigarette.
Oakley had previously told police she had the baby in her arms from 8 until 10:30 the night before the hospital visit. Folk said that was a lie.
"Unparalleled violence"
Sortland said members of the Enumclaw Police Department were relentless in getting to the bottom of the repeated attacks on the child. "There were a lot of 20-hour days in this case," he said.
That dogged determination was spurred by the brutality of the crime and the tender age of the victim, Sortland said. "I've been doing this 20 years and I've never seen such prolific violence," he said. Everyone connected with the case has been stunned by "the unparalleled violence he subjected the victim to," Sortland said.
The staff at Children's Hospital reportedly shared that view. "They were baffled that the child survived this type of treatment," Sortland said.
The infant made it through surgery, was released from the hospital and is now under the watchful eye of Child Protective Services.
Meanwhile, both Folk and Oakley have been confined to the Regional Justice Center.
During Folk's May 3 arraignment, a plea will be entered. A Prosecutor's Office spokesman said it's almost automatic that an innocent plea is entered at that time. Also, the terms of Folk's bail could again be addressed. The prosecutor will ask that the $500,000 bail be maintained.
Sortland doubted Folk would be given the opportunity to be released, as he had made an overt claim that he would flee. During an interview with detectives, Folk said, "If you guys say I'm under arrest, I will run. Just so you know that."
Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com
