A Queens grand jury has indicted a 30-year-old father on murder charges after prosecutors say he beat his 2-year-old son inside a Long Island City homeless shelter, leaving the toddler with catastrophic injuries that proved fatal.
Dayvon Morrison was arraigned Thursday in Queens Supreme Court on two counts of murder in the second degree and one count of endangering the welfare of a child. He pleaded not guilty before Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant, who remanded him into custody. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted. His next court date is May 1.
According to the charges, Morrison was the sole caretaker of his son Maliek and his daughter inside a family shelter at the Manhattan View Hotel at 39-05 29th Ave. in Long Island City on Jan. 30 and 31, when prosecutors say the boy’s injuries were inflicted. Morrison was in a drunken stupor at the time, according to the charges.
The case took a harrowing turn on the night of Feb. 2. At approximately 1:30 a.m., Morrison brought both children from the Long Island City shelter to East Harlem, traveling to a NYCHA building near 102nd Street and Third Avenue to drop off his daughter at his mother’s apartment. During that trip, Maliek was placed in the undercarriage of the stroller, the storage compartment beneath the seat, and remained there for roughly two hours. When Morrison eventually moved the boy into the stroller seat, witnesses nearby noticed the child’s deteriorating condition and called police.
EMS rushed Maliek to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where the severity of his injuries quickly became clear. He suffered a blown right pupil, fractured pelvis, laceration to the liver, damage to the brain stem, multiple brain bleeds, and swelling to the brain. He was placed on a ventilator. Despite those efforts, Maliek was pronounced dead on Feb. 4.
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz did not hold back in her statement following Thursday’s arraignment.
“A parent’s most sacred responsibility is ensuring the safety of their children,” Katz said. “As alleged, this defendant chose to abandon that solemn duty when he inflicted life-threatening injuries on his 2-year-old son, Maliek, and then let him suffer. It was only after other people, who observed the toddler’s injuries, intervened that the child received medical treatment.”
Katz added that her office’s thoughts are with Maliek’s loved ones during what she called an “incredibly difficult time.”
Morrison was booked at the 114th Precinct in Astoria following the investigation.
The case shines a painful light on the vulnerabilities facing children in New York City’s shelter system. Families placed in hotel-based shelters often lack the support networks, supervision, and social services that could flag warning signs before tragedies unfold. Maliek’s death occurred inside one of those facilities, and no intervention came until he was transported miles away to East Harlem, already gravely injured, with his condition only noticed because strangers on the street could see something was wrong.
New York City has faced persistent scrutiny over the conditions and oversight at family shelters, including the network of hotels converted to temporary housing as the city works through its ongoing shelter crisis. Advocates have long argued that front-line staff at these facilities need clearer protocols and stronger mandates for monitoring the welfare of children in their buildings.
Maliek Morrison was two years old. He did not survive to see his third birthday. By the time he received medical attention, prosecutors say, he had already been suffering for days.
The indictment means a grand jury found sufficient evidence to proceed to trial on the most serious charges. The case now moves toward a May court appearance, with the possibility of a trial to follow. If the jury ultimately convicts Morrison on the top count, he will spend a minimum of 25 years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
The 114th Precinct, which covers Astoria and parts of Long Island City, handled the initial booking. The Queens DA’s office is prosecuting.
