Starved to death, Oakmont girl, 3, finally gets a funeral

The brief service had already ended when a small group of Allegheny County detectives and prosecutors gathered in a close circle on the grassy hillside.

Standing near Bella Seachrist’s small grave, mounded with fresh dirt and a thick stack of pink and white roses placed by mourners, they listened closely as Jennifer Carter quietly recounted the time she spent as Bella’s foster mom.

It was only six weeks, Carter recalled, but long enough to change her family.

“From the day she was brought through our doorstep, her story was forever etched into ours,” she told them.

A life too short

During the public portion of Tuesday’s service — first at Burket-Truby Funeral Home in Oakmont and later at Plum Creek Cemetery — little was said about Bella. Maybe because little was known about her.

Bella’s life — really, her death — was thrust into the public spotlight on June 9, 2020, when the 3-year-old was found unresponsive and emaciated at her home on 10th Street in Oakmont.

Neighbors didn’t even know Bella lived there. She had been abused for months, police said, weighing just 20 pounds when first responders were called to her home that day.

An autopsy showed she died from starvation and dehydration.

Quickly, the investigation turned toward Bella’s father, Jose Salazar-Ortiz; his wife, Laura Ramriez; and Ramriez’s sister, Alexis Herrera.

All three were charged with homicide, and all three were convicted. In July, Herrera was the last to be sentenced. She and Ramriez are serving life without parole for first-degree murder, while Salazar-Ortiz is serving 33 to 66 years for third-degree murder.

No one from Bella’s family attended the sentencing proceedings to speak on her behalf.

Prosecutors said Bella, who was born from an affair her father had, became the target of prolonged abuse by Ramriez after she returned to live with Salazar-Ortiz in September 2019.

Before that, she lived with family in North Carolina.

And before that, for six weeks, she lived with Carter.

The ‘easiest baby’

“We loved her. We thought she was going to be with us forever,” Carter’s mother said Tuesday.

From May 2017 to July 2017, Carter told the gathered prosecutors and detectives, they cared for Bella, who was just 9 months old.

She described Bella’s infectious smile and a laugh that pierced their hearts; how her eyes filled with wonder during their almost daily outings; how she was calmed by swinging at the park.

They watched her achieve milestones, Carter said, like Bella learning how to sit up on her own and lifting her head during tummy time.

They watched her gleefully splash in water and delight in experiencing new foods.

Sometimes, Carter said, she would reach to the back seat to hold Bella’s hand to help calm her as they drove.

Her favorite song was “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”

“She was easily entertained, easily able to calm down and easily made an imprint on our hearts forever. When she had to leave our house, we knew she had forever changed us,” Carter said. “Bella was beautiful. Bella was joyful. Bella was sweet. Bella was naturally loving to people. She is now dancing and singing with Jesus and all the angels in heaven.

“She was the easiest baby.”

Remembering Bella

As Allegheny County Police Detective Nicole DePaoli approached Bella’s grave to place her rose, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small can of Coke.

The lead detective during the investigation and for the five years it took for the criminal case to conclude, DePaoli placed the red can on the corner at the bottom of the granite headstone.

It was Bella’s favorite drink.

As Deputy District Attorney Jennifer DiGiovanni, who led the prosecution, leaned down to place her flower, she pressed her fingers to the carving of Bella’s name.

Afterward, Oakmont police Chief Michael Ford, wearing his uniform, stood quietly watching the procession.

“This is a day of remembrance, giving her peace, setting her free,” Ford said. “This is a day to remember a little girl who didn’t get to live out her life.”

Brady Clarke, the business manager at Plum Creek Cemetery, said a group of police officers and prosecutors raised money to buy Bella a headstone. He was tasked with finding a plot in the cemetery where she would always be remembered.

He chose a site on a small hill directly across from the cemetery office, surrounded by headstones dating to the 1800s and early 1900s.

“It’s a great spot,” Clarke said.

2016-2020

About 80 people gathered at the funeral home Tuesday morning, releasing dozens of pink and white biodegradable balloons into the clear blue sky before the funeral procession pulled out, weaving through Plum to the cemetery about 15 minutes away.

Les Leasure, who works in the Oakmont police records department, helped organize Tuesday’s events.

“What I think is most important,” he said, “this was for Bella, but it was also for all of those who participate in the prosecution. They deserved closure and comfort because it was a horrendously bad case.”

As dozens of cars arrived at Plum Creek, a lone bagpiper played a dirge. He then played “Going Home” as Bella’s ashes — contained in a white butterfly urn — were carried by two of her brothers to the grave.

Funeral director Sean Truby said the service was meant to honor and celebrate Bella’s life.

“This is for Bella,” he said.

“There is extreme gratitude for the countless people that have stepped forward and given their time, talents and a voice for Bella,” Truby said. “God bless all the people that have stepped forward.”

Truby passed out Bella’s prayer card, featuring a photo of a smiling, bright-eyed girl, her dark hair pulled up in pigtails, wearing a pink dress adorned with white flowers.

Bella Rae Seachrist, it said. Born Aug. 12, 2016, died June 9, 2020.