PHOENIX — Newly obtained public records reveal that Arizona’s Department of Child Safety had at least a dozen interactions with the family of 10-year-old Rebekah Baptiste prior to her murder.

Authorities allege the child was tortured and killed by her father and his girlfriend in northern Arizona. Baptiste was found unresponsive on July 27 and died three days later at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

On July 29, her father, Richard Baptiste, and his girlfriend, Anicia Woods, were formally charged in Apache County Superior Court with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault, child abuse, and kidnapping in connection to her death.

The case has prompted serious questions about DCS’s handling of previous reports from concerned community members and school officials.

In response to a

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