LAILA MARIE DANIEL: THE TWO-YEAR-OLD GIRL SENT TO FOSTER CARE WHO DIED FOUR MONTHS LATER

HENRY COUNTY, GEORGIA — Two-year-old Laila Marie Daniel was placed in foster care in the hope that she and her older sister would be protected while their biological mother worked to overcome drug addiction.

Just four months later, Laila was dead.

The little girl’s death in November 2015 led to a sprawling criminal investigation, a 49-count indictment and a three-and-a-half-week trial that ultimately ended with her foster parents, Jennifer and Joseph Rosenbaum, being convicted of multiple crimes connected to Laila’s death and the abuse of her sister.

Years later, Georgia’s highest courts upheld the convictions.

LAILA AND HER SISTER ENTERED FOSTER CARE

Laila and her older sister, identified in court records as M.P., were taken into the custody of Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services in April 2015 after their mother lost custody.

Laila was about two years old, while her sister was around four.

The girls initially lived with another foster family before being moved to the care of Jennifer and Joseph Rosenbaum in July 2015.

Jennifer already knew the children’s mother. The two women had lived together in a group home when they were children.

At the time the Rosenbaums took custody, Jennifer was a third-year law student who had worked with the Henry County District Attorney’s Office. Joseph had previously worked as a correctional officer.

According to court records, Jennifer had become interested in caring for the girls after seeing them in juvenile court and learning about their placement. The Rosenbaums eventually became their foster parents while their biological mother worked through her case plan.

INJURIES APPEARED BEFORE LAILA’S DEATH

Evidence presented at trial showed that Laila and her sister had suffered injuries while in the Rosenbaums’ care.

The Georgia Court of Appeals later summarized evidence that the children sometimes returned from unsupervised visits with injuries.

Jennifer reportedly offered explanations that the children had hurt themselves while playing.

Medical evidence presented in court showed that Laila had sustained multiple serious injuries during the weeks before her death.

Among them were fractures to her arm and leg, a rib injury and earlier trauma to her head, liver and abdomen.

The court found that the evidence supported the conclusion that these injuries were not accidental.

Laila’s sist