RIPLEY, W.Va. — The Jackson County man who allegedly sexually assaulted a 10-month-old girl leading to her death was arraigned on a felony murder charge Thursday.
Benjamin Taylor, 32, of Fairplain, said little during the arraignment. He’s been in custody since Monday on a sexual assault charge after Emmaleigh Barringer’s mother found her daughter bleeding in the basement of the apartment she shared with Taylor.
The medical report from the state Medical Examiner’s Office hasn’t yet been completed, but the evidence behind the charges is based on examinations by the girl’s treating physicians in Ripley and Charleston, Jackson County Sheriff Tony Boggs said.
“Based upon what they’ve presented to us along with what we observed is what the charges has stemmed from at this time,” Boggs said.
The investigation is far from over but Boggs said there’s no reason to believe anyone else was involved.
“There’s nothing to indicate that there could have been, would have been, any possibility that anybody else was involved in this,” he said.
Barringer’s family agrees. A statement calls Taylor “a monster who had disguised himself as a caring and supporting friend.”
The statement goes on to call Taylor a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
Bail for Taylor remains at $2 million on the sexual assault charge. There’s no bail on the felony murder charge.