Euless man sentenced to 40 years in prison for abuse, death of 7-week-old daughter

A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for the death of his 7-week-old daughter after pleading guilty to injury of a child, the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office announced on Friday.

Zachary Watson plead guilty to abusing his daughter, Noriah Helmer.

Noriah died on May 14, 2022, at the ICU at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office. She had been physically abused by Watson at their Euless home, according to authorities.

A specific cause of death has not been reported by the medical examiner’s office.

The baby’s mother, Shanice Helmer, 23, faces a charge of child endangerment for allegedly allowing Watson to abuse Noriah and another child, according to Tarrant County court records. She was indicted in August. Her trial date has not been set.

Assistant Criminal District Attorney Deanna Franzen prosecuted this case. Investigators Brent Ezelle, Tiffany Johnson, and Euless police also worked on the case.

This story was originally published February 24, 2023 at 6:35 PM.