Skip to main contentSkip to main content
You have permission to edit this article.
Edit
editor's pick featured

Regret and pain at sentencing over toddler death

  • Updated

A county judge agreed to a plea deal on Thursday for a woman involved in the 2015 death of 3-year-old Zaaditozhon “Zaadii” Tso.

Coconino County District 3 Judge Mark R. Moran sentenced Emily Thakane Bean to three years probation after Bean agreed to plead guilty to two counts of felony child abuse.

According to the Flagstaff Police Department report, Bean drove her vehicle into the 3-year-old, his 8-year-old sister Bahozhoni Tso and their mother Rachel Tso as they used the brick pedestrian crossing in front of Best Buy, located at 5005 E. Marketplace Drive, around 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 22, 2015. The toddler was pulled from his mother’s hand by the force of the impact and crushed under the tires of the 2003 Hyundai Sonata. He died in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Flagstaff Medical Center in the early morning hours of Feb. 23.

The sentencing capped off an emotional morning in Coconino County Superior Court as members of the Tso and Bean family once again faced the reality of Zaadii’s death.

Rachel Tso cried in court as a video memorial of the little boy played in the courtroom in lieu of a public statement from the grieving family.

The video showed Zaadii playing with his family throughout his short life complete with pictures of him in his favorite Batman costume, which he wore all the time.

“I felt the video spoke better than I could at this moment,” Rachel Tso said. “I wanted everyone to see the joy that Zaadii brought when we saw him walking around in his sister's Wizard of Oz ruby red slippers and playing in his cape that he wouldn’t let us take off.”

Bean was spared no emotional expense as she sobbed throughout the sentencing, noticeably shaking as she stood in front of the judge.

Bean expressed regret in a tearful public statement directed to the Tso family.

“I am truly very, very sorry,” Bean said as she addressed the family. “I am very sorry and I apologize with all my heart.”

Judge Moran’s acceptance of the plea deal was due in part to what he thought was Bean’s genuine regret and her continuous service to the community as a volunteer. However the judge also said that the seriousness of this case means that Bean will have to live with the consequences.

“This is one of the most serious cases I have ever dealt with and this can only be described as someone’s worst nightmare,” Moran said. “This case is not about punishment or revenge, but about justice. I feel that the plea acceptance serves that basic goal and I believe Mrs. Bean has accepted responsibility for what she has done by standing in front of her community and the court. She will have to live with the fact that she caused the death of an innocent child.”

In addition to probation Bean is required to not drive, to turn over her car to the state for destruction, complete 360 hours of community service in Zaadii’s name and participate in a Navajo peacemaking ceremony with the Tso family.

Rachel Tso said she felt the peacekeeping ceremony could help begin the healing process.

“I truly think that the peacekeeping ceremony will put us on a path to healing,” Rachel Tso said. “It is a beautiful process and while I will never feel whole again it is important to try.

Members of the Tso family expressed mixed feelings about the sentencing, with some noting the importance of forgiveness and others still expressing anger over the tragic incident.

Zaadii’s father Francis Tso said that he was learning to let go of his anger.

“We all have to learn to cope with it because being angry doesn’t help much,” Francis Tso said. “We have to accept what happened and cope.”

Zaadii’s Aunt, Betty Tso, said that she was still angry, but chose to remember playing with the child when he was first born.

“I am angry, but I think about his birth because I want to remember him when his life started,” Betty Tso said.

His other Aunt, Juanita Tso, questioned whether justice could ever be served.

“I am not his parents but I am full of rage,” she said. “How do you say that justice was served when you can’t place a value on a life.”

The entire family spoke about the boy as a child with limitless potential. A child who would grow up and change the world for the better.

“He had so much energy and he was so loved,” Rachel Tso said. “I used to think with the amount of love he had from us and the community that he would grow up and change the world. I just hope now that even though I can’t hold my son in my arms his energy will live on and make positive change.”

Betty Tso referred to Zaadii’s name, which means “gentle water,” in Navajo.

“We never had an opportunity to see him grow and we knew he was going to make a good life with just his name,” Betty Tso said. “Gentle water can change rock and carve though mountains and he would have done amazing things.”

Juanita Tso expressed the same sentiment.

“We always knew he would grow up and make things happen,” she said. “He could have been anything he wanted to be.”

Rachel Tso said that she spoiled Zaadii and that she has no regrets about that.

“He was spoiled and I am so glad I spoiled him,” Rachel Tso said as she flashed a tearful smile. “I remember someone telling me that he would have trouble finding a girlfriend because no one would compare to his mom.”

“I truly think that the peacekeeping ceremony will put us on a path to healing.”

--Rachel Tso, mother of Zaadii

quote
0
0
0
0
0

Be the first to know

* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.

Related to this story

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.

Topics

News Alerts

Breaking News

Breaking News (FlagLive!)