Erin Maxwell
OSWEGO COUNTY, N.Y. -- As the community mourns the loss of 11-year-old Erin Maxwell, State Police and the district attorney continue to investigate her death.
At a news conference Friday, investigators confirmed that Erin's stepbrother Alan Jones was home with her the night she died and named him a person of interest.
“Anybody who would've been in contact with the individual that ultimately is found dead, of course you chat with them. So to the extent that they are of interest? Absolutely," said Oswego County District Attorney Donald Dodd.
Police haven't made any arrests and aren't commenting on suspects. They also aren't releasing autopsy results, even though they've ruled Erin's death a homicide.
New details are surfacing surrounding the death of an 11-year-old girl. Erin Maxwell was injured in her home on August 29th and died later that night at University Hospital. State Police are treating her case as a homicide, but haven't made any arrests. Our Andy Mattison has the latest on the investigation.
"That determination is based off of facts that we have from the autopsy, along with our investigation. We're not going to disclose those facts at this point," said New York State Police Lieutenant Troy Little.
Even though little is known about the investigation, police want to assure Palermo residents they don't need to be concerned.
"We don't feel there is any need for public alarm in this case. We don't feel they are in any type of danger," said Little.
People we spoke with in the area seemed to think the police have the situation under control.
"My opinion is they know what happened already and for whatever reason, they can't say yet. I think if there was a big concern, then people around here would know about it," said Lance Barnes, manager of Joe Bush’s Collision.
The Town of Palermo has condemned the house that Erin lived in for the last eight years and the SPCA is trying to retrieve cats still in the house. As the investigation into her death is now two weeks old, the community here is still searching for answers as to who or what killed this 11-year-old girl.