An eight-year-old girl has died after she succumbed to the caused upon her by her grandmother. Patricia Ann Ricks, a North Carolina woman has been arrested and charged with murder after allegedly beating her granddaughter to death.

Around 4 pm Tuesday, police were notified after a juvenile was taken into the emergency room with severe injuries and was declared dead upon arrival. Authorities determined that the child was living in a Nashville, North Carolina, home and went to the address to follow up.

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The girl was beaten so severely by her grandmother, Patricia Ann Ricks, that she died from her injuries. She and several other siblings lived with the grandmother, according to a press release by Nash County Sheriff’s Office. The name of the girl has not been released. When she was taken to Nash UNC Healthcare in Rocky Mount, she had severe injuries throughout her entire body and head.

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Who is Patricia Ann Ricks?

Patricia Ann Ricks was the child’s legal guardian, according to the Nash County Sheriff’s Office. She is 72 years old. The girl and several other siblings lived at Ricks’ home in the town of Nashville.

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Ricks now faces charges of first-degree murder and felony child abuse resulting in serious injury. Currently, she is being held without bail at the Nash County Detention Center and is due to appear in the county’s district court for the first time on Thursday, the sheriff’s office said.

Officers in the county sheriff’s office started an investigation on Tuesday into the circumstances surrounding Ricks’ granddaughter’s death.

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Ricks did not state with the sheriff’s office when she was arrested, and authorities say that any potential motive for the alleged crime is still unknown. The girl’s siblings who also lived at their grandmother’s home, have been placed in the custody of Nash Country social services.