‘I treated them all equal’: Josie Dikeman denies abusing dead child

Dikeman recounted multiple instances of alleged abuse at the hands of the victim’s father, Derek Pedrin, targeting both her and Alexavier. Pedrin previously testified in the trial that he was violent at times with the defendant, but denied ever touching his children. Dikeman said that wasn’t true and detailed an incident in which Alexavier had lost a dental crown. “Derek tried shoving it back in his mouth,” she said. “He made Alex open his mouth, and he shoved it back in and Alex was crying.” When asked to recount how many times she saw Pedrin hit his son, she said, “I can’t count, it’s been ever since he was a baby.”

Dikeman flatly denied killing Alexavier when asked by her attorney. She has said that she woke up to find him unresponsive and immediately called 911. An autopsy showed the child suffered blunt force trauma and had a lacerated liver.