Hamilton County father indicted for first degree murder of
11-month-old daughter
HAMILTON COUNTY,
Tenn. — A Hamilton County man, who is currently behind bars, is
now indicted for first degree murder and child neglect.
30-year-old Nicholas Peter Merrill is accused of murdering his
11-month-old daughter, Malaysia Merrill.
The Chattanooga
Police department says Merrill took his daughter to T. C.
Thompson Children's Hospital on July 23rd, 2023.
CPD says
the child was dead when they arrived at the hospital.
Assistant Police Chief Jerri Sutton says an autopsy shows
hyperthermia led to the child's death, which is caused by
exposure to high temperatures.
The autopsy report we
obtained says Merrill claims he left the child in a car seat
from 1 a.m. until 2 p.m. That's 13 hours.
The indictment
accuses Merrill of purposefully neglecting and killing the
child.
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“Any time there’s a loss of a child, it’s just a very tragic event no
matter if it’s by natural means or by accident or by some other means,” he
said.