KCE is using Zha’riyah’s name with permission from and at the request of her mother.

KENOSHA, Wis. — In a stunning development that has left the family of the late Zha’riyah Robinson devastated and outraged, the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office moved to dismiss all charges against Dakari S.D. Childress on Monday — the very morning jury selection was set to begin.

Childress, now 17, had been accused of first-degree sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 stemming from an August 22, 2023 incident in which he allegedly brutally raped five-year-old Zha’riyah Robinson while briefly supervising her at a Kenosha home. Zha’riyah passed away less than three months later, on November 16, 2023, in Surprise, Arizona.

The case, which has drawn intense attention in Kenosha and beyond for more than two years, collapsed on the morning of March 9, 2026, before a single juror was seated.

What Happened In Court

At approximately 9:22 a.m. Monday, Deputy District Attorney Rosa Delgado appeared in court on behalf of the State of Wisconsin before Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Heather Iverson. Defense attorney Clare Schum was present for Childress, who appeared in custody.

Delgado moved to dismiss the case without prejudice, telling the court that prosecutors had spoken with the victim’s family and had concluded they would be unable to meet their burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

Judge Iverson noted pointedly from the bench that the case had been scheduled for trial since November 2024 and that no new evidence had been discovered. The State agreed that no new evidence had been obtained. Defense attorney Schum did not object to the dismissal.

Iverson granted the State’s motion. The $10,000 cash bond Childress had posted was reinstated and ordered returned to the poster. Childress was released from all bond conditions on the case.

The dismissal was without prejudice, meaning charges could theoretically be refiled in the future.

The Family Reacts

Zha’riyah’s mother, Xazasia Robsinson, who asked KCE to continue using her daughter’s name, released a raw and emotional statement following Monday’s dismissal:

“At just 24 years old, my life turned into a lifetime movie and my 5-year-old was gone. Every day I’m wondering why. Why did things play out the way they did? The DA had us thinking for two years she was ready to fight — until about a month ago, when [Delgado] came to us with her doubts. She let the opposite team get in her head. It’s six days away from when Zha’riyah would have turned 8 years old, and now my baby won’t have her justice. Since my baby won’t have justice, I’m pushing: no justice, no peace. This will not be the end of my baby’s story.”

Zha’riyah’s grandfather, Timothy Starks, who has been a fixture in the courtroom throughout the nearly two-and-a-half-year legal battle, was also deeply shaken by the dismissal. Starks told KCE he is not done fighting and plans to continue pushing for the case to be recharged.

What Went Wrong

Sources familiar with the case told KCE that there simply was not enough evidence to secure a conviction, and that the prosecution faced significant complications throughout the life of the case.

Among the most damaging: the SANE nurse — a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner whose forensic examination and testimony would have been critical evidence — was fired during the pendency of the case, throwing a key piece of the prosecution into question.

Insiders also told KCE that former ADA Alexandra Smathers, the sex crimes specialist who originally prosecuted the case, should not have brought charges in the first place given the evidentiary foundation available. Smathers is no longer with the Kenosha County DA’s Office.

A Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s report, which emerged during the case, ruled that Zha’riyah’s death was natural — caused by acute peritonitis from a ruptured duodenal ulcer — and explicitly stated that it was unrelated to the Wisconsin sexual assault case. That finding stripped prosecutors of any ability to tie Childress to her death.

A Case Marked By Controversy From The Start

The road to Monday’s collapse was long and marked by a series of deeply troubling developments.

When Childress first appeared as an adult in Kenosha County Circuit Court in February 2024, Court Commissioner William Michel II set no-cash bail over the objection of the DA’s office, which had requested $25,000 cash bail. The decision outraged Zha’riyah’s family.

By May 2024, Childress was simultaneously out on felony bail in Winnebago County for stealing a firearm from a pawn shop while awaiting trial in Kenosha. The situation grew so tense that a disturbance broke out outside the Kenosha County Courthouse on May 29, 2024, when Childress’s mother allegedly smiled at Zha’riyah’s family as she left the courtroom. Dozens of police officers and sheriff’s deputies poured onto 56th Street. Zha’riyah’s 22-year-old aunt was cited for disorderly conduct.

Childress had his bond revoked in June 2024 after a court found he had violated his release conditions, and was taken into custody at a contentious hearing before Judge Anthony Milisauskas.

In November 2025, he was released again after posting a $10,000 cash bond — one day after Judge Iverson denied his speedy trial request.

Then, just four days before trial was set to begin, prosecutors charged Childress with three new counts of felony bail jumping in Kenosha County, alleging he had committed another crime while on bond, had unsupervised contact with a 16-year-old girl, and had failed to update his address with the Clerk of Courts. The new Kenosha charges remain pending. Childress also faces a separate Winnebago County case accusing him of stealing a vehicle in Oshkosh in May 2024. DNA recovered from the stolen vehicle is alleged to match Childress.

Iverson denied a state request to delay the trial over those new charges on March 5, ruling the case would proceed as scheduled — only for the State to walk in Monday morning and ask that it be dismissed entirely.

What Comes Next

The dismissal was entered without prejudice, which means the Kenosha County DA’s Office retains the legal ability to refile the sexual assault charge if new evidence comes to light or circumstances change. However, given that prosecutors acknowledged Monday they could not meet their burden of proof — and that no new evidence has been obtained after more than two years — the path to a refiled case is deeply uncertain.

Childress still faces pending charges in Winnebago County and the newly filed Kenosha County bail-jumping case.

For Zha’riyah Robinson’s family, the morning of what should have been her day in court became yet another loss. She would have turned eight years old this Sunday.

Timothy Stark, her grandfather, told KCE he intends to keep fighting.

Kenosha County Eye will continue to follow this story.

More coverage of this story:

• What Happened To Zha’riyah? – Sexual Assault And Mysterious Death Of Beloved 5-Year-Old Girl
• One Cited After Courthouse Disturbance Involving Deceased 5-Year-Old
• Alleged Child Rapist Has Bond Revoked – Taken Into Custody At Court Hearing Today
• Alleged Child Rapist Freed on Bail Day After Judge Rejects Speedy Trial Request
• Alleged Child Rapist Charged With Slew Of New Felonies Across Two Counties As Trial Looms Monday