Suffolk legislators want answers in alleged torture death of 7-year-old Jor'Dynn Duncan

Suffolk County Minority Leader Jason Richberg on Tuesday called for officials from Child Protective Services and the police department to provide a briefing to lawmakers on the alleged child abuse death of Jor'Dynn Duncan, the 7-year-old Bayport girl who prosecutors say was tortured and killed by her legal guardian.

Richberg (D-West Babylon) requested a briefing on Jor'Dynn's case for members of the legislature's Human Services Committee, an oversight body for CPS, at the committee's meeting Tuesday.

"It's extremely distressing and it seems like there are some systematic issues that we need to figure out," Richberg told Newsday afterward. "A 7-year-old passed away and as county elected officials, it's our responsibility to get answers and figure out how we can fix this."

Legis. Rebecca Sanin (D-Huntington Station) also requested social services meet with lawmakers.

"Because a child in our county died, and we have a responsibility, whether or not the county is responsible for it is not the point," she added. "The point is a child died, and as policymakers we should be bringing people together to do a better job and solve problems across multi-systems, whether that's the courts, the schools, you know, pediatrics, but we need to be doing more."

Michael Martino, a spokesman for Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine, declined to comment on Richberg's request. He also declined to say whether the county executive has called for a separate investigation into Jor'Dynn's death.

Last week, Suffolk prosecutors announced the indictment of three generations of women in a single family in connection with Jor'Dynn's Dec. 29 death: Emily Kelly, 50, the fiancee of Jor'Dynn's incarcerated father who was granted custody of the girl, Kelly's mother, Barbara Renner, 75, and Elyssa Seymore, 24, Kelly’s daughter.

Kelly pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, unlawful imprisonment, reckless endangerment and other counts in connection with Jor'Dynn's death. The defense said the girl's injuries were the result of self harm. Prosecutors said those claims were untrue.

Renner pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree manslaughter and a misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child. Seymore pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree unlawful imprisonment and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

Newsday reported exclusively last week that two of Kelly's children died decades earlier. Kelly — the daughter of a Nassau County police officer — was 21 in 1997 when her boyfriend admitted killing her infant son, Tyler, after he became enraged because the baby would not stop crying. Kelly was never accused of any wrongdoing in that case.

Additionally, sources told Newsday that another baby born to Kelly, named Kayla Ann, died in 1994, when Kelly would have been around 18 years old. The circumstances of that baby's death were not available.

It's unclear if CPS or family court officials knew about the deaths of Kelly's children when she was granted custody of Jor'Dynn. 

CPS placed Jor’Dynn in the Oak Street home with Kelly, the fiancee of her incarcerated father, on Dec. 4, 2024, Suffolk prosecutors said. Alleged mistreatment of Jor'Dynn surfaced as early as Jan. 17, 2025, Assistant District Attorney Dena Rizopoulos said at Kelly’s arraignment. But a Suffolk County Family Court judge granted Kelly custody of Jor'Dynn in April 2025, the prosecutor said.

Eight months later, Jor'Dynn was dead.

Text messages between Kelly and Seymore shed light on the alleged abuse Jor'Dynn endured, which included, according to prosecutors, being hit in the face and tied up in a bathtub.

Kelly's attorney, John LoTurco, has said he's confident his client "will be exonerated." Renner's attorney, Danielle Coysh, has said she has dementia and "no criminal culpability." Seymore's attorney, Katherine Fernandez, has said her client denies the allegations against her relating to a three-day period in July 2025.

According to prosecutors, on Dec. 29, at approximately 10:30 a.m., Kelly called 911 to report that Jor'Dynn was in cardiac arrest.

Kelly told a 911 operator that Jor'Dynn had been suffering a fever and had been vomiting.

Paramedics found her unconscious on the floor outside a bathroom in the three-bedroom home and took her to NYU Langone Hospital-Suffolk in Patchogue. She was pronounced dead at the hospital an hour later.

Jor'Dynn died from an infection after she suffered nine sharp-force wounds that led to a perforated colon, prosecutors said, citing her autopsy.

Jor'Dynn had at least 90 injuries on her body in the final 48 hours of her life, and 20 older injuries, including some that suggested she had been whipped with a folded cord in the past, prosecutors said.

Jor’Dynn began living with Kelly sometime after her mother, Portia Duncan, 46, lost custody of Jor'Dynn, prosecutors have said. The girl's father, Derrick Dixon, 51, is currently serving up to 4 years in prison for attempted burglary in upstate Sing Sing Correctional Facility.

Newsday's Grant Parpan and Joe Werkmeister contributed to this story.