Losing Shylae again: Birth mother doesn't regret adoption, defends sister facing murder charge

Shannon Murphy

The Flint Journal

FLINT, Michigan -- Rachel Thomas shows off the single baby shoe, notes from doctors and Polaroid pictures gathered in the few short months she was a mother to Shylae Thomas.

In a large green-and-blue striped tote bag, she carries her memories and mementos of the little girl she gave birth to nearly 10 years ago and whose care she entrusted to family after acknowledging she couldn't give the girl all she needed.

Now, Thomas is mourning for the daughter she lost -- and for her sister accused of murdering the girl.

Courtesy photoAn autopsy determined that Shylae Thomas, 9, weighed 33 pounds when she died.

She does not, however, regret her decision to allow family members to step in to raise her severely mentally and physically disabled daughter.

"I just wanted someone who could be there for my kids," Rachel Thomas said. "I knew when I gave up Shylae and (her sister), I was doing the right thing. I didn't want them living in a dope home."

The body of 9-year-old Shylae was found April 22 in a Vienna Township storage unit, wrapped in a garbage bag and shoved in a storage bin.

An autopsy determined that she weighed 33 pounds and died of chronic malnourishment and neglect. Rachel's sister Lorrie M. Thomas was charged last week with second-degree murder and child abuse in Shylae's death.

Rachel Thomas, 38, openly acknowledges her struggles, admitting that she drinks alcohol frequently and smokes marijuana occasionally.

And, in the past, she said she turned to prostitution and theft to buy milk and food for her children.

In an interview at her home on Flint's northwest side, sobs racked Thomas' thin frame as she talked about Shylae. Other times, she paced the rooms in bursts of energy.

"I just want to hug my sister because I know in my heart Lorrie must have flipped out when she found Shylae dead," Rachel Thomas said. "She loved my baby too much to throw my baby out like garbage."

Rachel says she believes Lorrie never harmed Shylae and that her daughter may have died from natural causes.

Shylae was born healthy in June 1999. But, according to court records, a month later, she was discovered in her playpen in "fully cardiopulmonary arrest."

Rachel said she'd returned home from working at a market on Dayton Street to find her daughter's head pressed against the side of the playpen, her face blue.

Shylae was resuscitated, but the lack of oxygen left her with severe brain damage, and as a result, she was a quadriplegic.

Court records show that six months after that, Shylae was taken to the hospital with a broken femur.

Rachel Thomas told officials that Shylae had fallen from a sofa. But there was no sofa in the home, and doctors said the injuries were consistent with a fall from a two-story building.

That incident, coupled with the fact that Shylae missed a number of doctor's appointments, caused Department of Human Services workers to begin parental rights termination hearings.

Rachel Thomas denies there was any abuse on her part and said she missed doctor's appointments because she was scared and thought "lawyers were after" her to take her children away.

"I was on the run," she said.

To avoid losing the children, Rachel took Shylae and her sister to Mississippi.

She was there for a only short time before returning to Flint for a relative's funeral. That day, Rachel claims she missed the funeral because she had sex for money to buy milk for her daughter.

That same day, her family talked to Rachel. They prayed with her and asked her to consider allowing other family to care for Shylae and another daughter.

Rachel agreed. It was early 2000, and it was the last time Rachel had custody of Shylae.

Rachel Thomas lost custody of five of her children, and four were adopted by family members. She still has custody of her sixth and youngest child, a 5-year-old boy.

Rachel lost custody of her two oldest children in 1992, when she was arrested for stealing and went to prison six years, she said. Her mother was taking care of her children at the time before turning them over to other relatives.

"I got out of prison, and no one wanted to give me my kids back," Rachel said.

Shortly after, she lost custody of another daughter.

Rachel Thomas officially lost her parental rights to Shylae and another daughter, now 11, in 2001. Court transcripts said there is "clear and convincing evidence she deserted both children for more than 91 days." Rachel did not show up to the hearing.

Rachel Thomas said she wants custody of her other children back, three of whom are still minors.

Lorrie Thomas adopted Shylae and her sister in 2003.

But Rachel said she still often saw her children. When her cousin Josette Thomas and when Lorrie had custody, she would stop by once a week to bathe Shylae, do her hair and bring her gifts, she said.

Josette Thomas said her cousin was smart to give up her children.

"She would come over and sit with her and feed her and take pictures of her," Josette said. "She tried to be involved."

Josette Thomas said she was surprised to hear that Rachel was defending Lorrie Thomas in Shylae's death.

"Basically, I think she just doesn't want to deal with it," Josette said. "It's like she's saying, 'I can't handle this right now.'"

Mark Clement, Lorrie Thomas' attorney, earlier said he was waiting for documents from the prosecutor's office but that from his short time talking to Lorrie, he believed the charge of murder doesn't match her character.

But Prosecutor David Leyton said there was enough evidence to justify the charges and said Rachel Thomas couldn't possibly know what her sister was thinking.

"She's not in a position to give an opinion on what a good mother is," he said. "She thinks she was a good mother and yet lost five children. I don't see how her opinion is meaningful."

Rachel Thomas, on the other hand, is determined to become the mother she never was to her remaining children.

"I want to bury my baby, and I want the rest of my kids," she said. "When I couldn't make it, I cried out for help.

"It was real hard, but I wanted the best things for my babies."