A 33-year-old Michigan mother of six who killed and tortured her blind 3-year-old son before placing his body in a basement freezer will serve several decades in prison.
On Friday, Azuradee France formally entered a guilty plea to one count of second-degree murder in connection with the 2022 death of little Chayse Allen.
When France was first detained in June 2022, she was accused of a number of crimes, including felony murder, child abuse, torture, and hiding a person’s death. All other charges against France were dismissed in exchange for her plea to kill her kid.
The trial for France’s murder was supposed to start on Monday.
The Detroit News was informed by France’s legal representative, Lillian Diallo of the Public Defender’s Office, that as part of her plea agreement, her client will spend 35 to 60 years in a state prison.
Police reported finding the “remains of a deceased child”—later identified as Chayse—inside a freezer in the home’s basement when they arrived on the scene. France was apprehended and brought to the Wayne County Jail.
France’s home contained “something that no one should have to see,” according to Detroit Police Chief James E. White.
“The other kids, just imagine what they must have gone through and what they must have endured being inside of that home,” the police chief stated at the time. “And yes, a child was decomposing and yes, the child was found in the freezer.”
According to White, during their first interaction with France, the officers sensed something was “not right” about her communication style and her repeated attempts to wave off law enforcement and Child Protective Services “as if nothing was going on.”
He said, though, that the cops “knew that something was wrong,” which is what prompted them to investigate the house and find Chayse’s death.
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The case’s heinousness stunned the prosecutors as well.
“The alleged facts in this case have astounded even the seriously jaded,” Worthy declared in a press release that followed France’s apprehension. “Not only are our children at risk from gun violence, but they are also at risk from the alleged murderer who shares their home.”
According to reports France made in a police interview, one evening in late March 2022, she got so angry at Chayse for not eating that she belted him and gave him a number of chest kicks. The toddler was dead when she went to check on him the next morning.
France clarified that she was afraid the police would take her other children away, which is why she didn’t call 911. Rather, she carried Chayse’s body downstairs to the basement freezer and placed it in a bag.
France’s sentencing hearing is expected to take place in court again on July 29.
