Another case where Grandma, Daddy, and the murdered baby were in the home....but not Mom? What happened to Mom? Another custody/visitation situation? I looked at past articles in this paper, and NOT ONE mentions the mother of this infant. Why?
Dad is identified as JOSHUA PETERSEN.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/56253971-78/petersen-woman-hearing-ryker.html.csp
911 call details moments after father allegedly shot 5-month-old son
21-year-old Joshua Petersen is charged with aggravated murder.
By Jessica Miller
The Salt Lake Tribune
First Published May 02 2013 04:44 pm • Updated 4 hours ago
The woman who called 911 was breathless as she gave the address to an American Fork home and told the dispatcher her emergency: her grandson had been shot in the head.
"Roll the cops, roll an ambulance," said the woman, who identifies herself only as "the grandma" to dispatchers. "Shots fired. A baby’s been hit in the head. Please come now. Please."
The baby, Ryker Petersen, was 5 months old on April 5 when police say his 21-year-old father, Joshua Petersen, shot him in the head in the basement of their home located near 500 East and 500 North.
During the 911 call — obtained by The Tribune through an open records request — the woman told the dispatcher that the baby’s father had tried to shoot himself and she can be heard telling someone, "You give me that gun."
Moments later, with the gun in the grandmother’s hands, and Ryker in his father’s arms, the woman told the dispatcher that she thought the 5-month-old had died, but then said he began breathing again.
"Ryker, Grandma’s here," the woman said. "Ryker, Grandma loves you with all my heart."
Throughout the phone call, a muffled male voice can be heard in the background, and when the woman asks the man why he did this, his voice can barely be heard in the background: "I wanted [inaudible] together."
Ryker was pronounced dead at a Salt Lake City hospital.
Petersen has since been charged in 4th District Court with aggravated murder, a first-degree felony. If convicted, Petersen could face the death penalty or up to life in prison. Whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty will be decided after Petersen is arraigned.
Petersen appeared in the Provo courthouse Monday, where he was supposed to decide whether to waive his right to a preliminary hearing. His attorney asked for a continuance, and another hearing was set for May 20.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Dad charged with abusing 11-year-old son (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
Who is the unnamed woman who was protesting the abuse? If it was the mother, wouldn't they say so?
Which makes me think it was NOT the mother. What happened to the mother? Is this yet another custody/visitation situation?
As usual, the mainstream media chooses to confuse the matter.
Dad is identified as SHANE ANDREW SODSAIKICH.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/Tulsa_father_charged_with_child_abuse/20130502_11_tulsa_62208
Tulsa father charged with child abuse
By DAVID HARPER World Staff Writer on May 2, 2013, at 8:00 PM
Updated on 5/02/13 at 9:54 PM
A Tulsa man was charged Thursday with abusing his 11-year-old son last week.
Shane Andrew Sodsaikich, 30, was charged in Tulsa County District Court with "child abuse by injury."
Police were called to Saint Francis Hospital late Friday after a doctor who examined the boy saw bruises on the child's hip and head, according to an arrest report.
A woman told police that she witnessed Sodsaikich pull the boy by the hair, push him to the ground and push his head into a wall, the report says.
The woman also said she yelled at Sodsaikich in an attempt to stop the abuse, the report states. Sodsaikich was booked into the Tulsa Jail on Saturday and remained there as of Thursday night.
Tulsa County Assistant District Attorney Sarah McAmis said Sodsaikich is the father of the child.
Which makes me think it was NOT the mother. What happened to the mother? Is this yet another custody/visitation situation?
As usual, the mainstream media chooses to confuse the matter.
Dad is identified as SHANE ANDREW SODSAIKICH.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/Tulsa_father_charged_with_child_abuse/20130502_11_tulsa_62208
Tulsa father charged with child abuse
By DAVID HARPER World Staff Writer on May 2, 2013, at 8:00 PM
Updated on 5/02/13 at 9:54 PM
A Tulsa man was charged Thursday with abusing his 11-year-old son last week.
Shane Andrew Sodsaikich, 30, was charged in Tulsa County District Court with "child abuse by injury."
Police were called to Saint Francis Hospital late Friday after a doctor who examined the boy saw bruises on the child's hip and head, according to an arrest report.
A woman told police that she witnessed Sodsaikich pull the boy by the hair, push him to the ground and push his head into a wall, the report says.
The woman also said she yelled at Sodsaikich in an attempt to stop the abuse, the report states. Sodsaikich was booked into the Tulsa Jail on Saturday and remained there as of Thursday night.
Tulsa County Assistant District Attorney Sarah McAmis said Sodsaikich is the father of the child.
Dad stabs to death 3-year-old son (Durban, South Africa)
Notice that the mother is not listed among those who were in the home at the time of the stabbing, though it appears everbody else was there. Is this another one of those crazy killer daddy who got his custody/visitation rights?
UNNAMED DAD
http://www.thepost.co.za/boy-3-killed-by-dad-1.1510086
Boy (3) killed by dad
May 3 2013 at 02:06pm
By SHERLISSA PETERS
INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS
Durban - A father has been arrested in connection with the murder of his three-year-old son, who was stabbed while sleeping.
Wartburg detectives arrested the 25-year-old man at his Swayimane home on Wednesday night and he was expected to appear in the New Hanover Magistrate’s Court on Firday.
Police said he was found in possession of a blood-stained knife, believed to be the murder weapon.
The child had been asleep in the bedroom of his grandmother’s home with his four-year old sister, while his grandmother and aunt watched television in the next room. They heard screams coming from the bedroom and ran into the room to find the boy lying on the bed covered with blood.
“The family immediately rushed the child to hospital but he died from his injuries,” said police spokeswoman, Lieutenant Joey Jeevan. Family members who spoke to the media on Thursday, said that they were shocked and baffled.
“Why would a father kill his child like that? It is too painful to think about,” said the boy’s aunt.
UNNAMED DAD
http://www.thepost.co.za/boy-3-killed-by-dad-1.1510086
Boy (3) killed by dad
May 3 2013 at 02:06pm
By SHERLISSA PETERS
INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS
Durban - A father has been arrested in connection with the murder of his three-year-old son, who was stabbed while sleeping.
Wartburg detectives arrested the 25-year-old man at his Swayimane home on Wednesday night and he was expected to appear in the New Hanover Magistrate’s Court on Firday.
Police said he was found in possession of a blood-stained knife, believed to be the murder weapon.
The child had been asleep in the bedroom of his grandmother’s home with his four-year old sister, while his grandmother and aunt watched television in the next room. They heard screams coming from the bedroom and ran into the room to find the boy lying on the bed covered with blood.
“The family immediately rushed the child to hospital but he died from his injuries,” said police spokeswoman, Lieutenant Joey Jeevan. Family members who spoke to the media on Thursday, said that they were shocked and baffled.
“Why would a father kill his child like that? It is too painful to think about,” said the boy’s aunt.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Drunk dad slapped, choked 12-year-old son during visitation (Charleston, South Carolina)
Contrary to what the fathers rights people keep whining, violent alcoholics like dad MARTIN DOUGLAS TROY get their custody/visitation rights all the time--even when Mom managed to get a restraining order.
Who has more rights again? Hint: It ain't Mom or the kids.
http://www.live5news.com/story/22145799/father-charged-after-slapping-choking-12-year-old-son
Cops: Drunk dad slapped, choked 12-year-old son
Posted: May 02, 2013 5:01 PM EDT Updated: May 02, 2013 5:16 PM EDT
CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC) - Charleston police say they have arrested a father who, while possibly intoxicated, slapped and choked his 12-year-old son.
Martin Douglas Troy, 36, was arrested Thursday and charged with unlawful conduct towards a child.
According to an incident report, police were called to the home of the child's mother on March 16 around 9:15 p.m. The mother told officers her son was assaulted by his father while visiting his dad's house earlier that evening.
The victim told police he was pestering his step-brother when his father began slapping his back to get him to stop. When he tried to get his cell phone, his father wrapped his arm around his neck and choked him for a few seconds.
Reports state the victim was then pushed onto a couch after trying to escape. It was at that time that he called his grandmother for a ride home.
The victim told police he believed his father was drinking before the attack because he saw his dad constantly going to a closet where his alcohol is hidden.
The victim's mother said she has a restraining order against Troy that states he is not allowed to drink alcohol or become violent around their children.
The report states officers went to Troy's house on Culver Ave. in West Ashley to perform a welfare check because he was still watching their 8-year-old daughter.
Officers say the child was safe, but Troy appeared to be intoxicated.
Troy is being held at the Charleston County Detention Center.
Who has more rights again? Hint: It ain't Mom or the kids.
http://www.live5news.com/story/22145799/father-charged-after-slapping-choking-12-year-old-son
Cops: Drunk dad slapped, choked 12-year-old son
Posted: May 02, 2013 5:01 PM EDT Updated: May 02, 2013 5:16 PM EDT
CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC) - Charleston police say they have arrested a father who, while possibly intoxicated, slapped and choked his 12-year-old son.
Martin Douglas Troy, 36, was arrested Thursday and charged with unlawful conduct towards a child.
According to an incident report, police were called to the home of the child's mother on March 16 around 9:15 p.m. The mother told officers her son was assaulted by his father while visiting his dad's house earlier that evening.
The victim told police he was pestering his step-brother when his father began slapping his back to get him to stop. When he tried to get his cell phone, his father wrapped his arm around his neck and choked him for a few seconds.
Reports state the victim was then pushed onto a couch after trying to escape. It was at that time that he called his grandmother for a ride home.
The victim told police he believed his father was drinking before the attack because he saw his dad constantly going to a closet where his alcohol is hidden.
The victim's mother said she has a restraining order against Troy that states he is not allowed to drink alcohol or become violent around their children.
The report states officers went to Troy's house on Culver Ave. in West Ashley to perform a welfare check because he was still watching their 8-year-old daughter.
Officers say the child was safe, but Troy appeared to be intoxicated.
Troy is being held at the Charleston County Detention Center.
Dad pleads guilty to capital murder in 2-year-old son's death; slit boy's throat during visitation to avoid child support (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Killer dad DANNY PRATT was really nothing more than a sperm donor, a piece of sh** that Mom dated only briefly.
But because we grant donors all the full rights and responsibilities of fathers, this piece of sh** was on the hook for child support. In fact, Mom was REQUIRED to give his name if she was to get food stamps.
So of course, the sh** gets visitation too. And this is what happens.
We need to stop giving rights to sperm donors. The only donors who should have rights are the ones who are legally married to the mother and committed to providing for a family. Period.
And then we need to start funding social services at acceptable levels. This is crap.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2013/05/father_pleads_guilty_to_capifa.html
New Orleans father pleads guilty to capital murder for slitting 2-year-old son's throat
By Claire Galofaro, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune on May 02, 2013 at 11:17 AM, updated May 02, 2013 at 2:17 PM
A 26-year-old man pleaded guilty to capital murder in Criminal District Court Thursday morning, admitting that he slit his 2-year-old son's throat to avoid paying $4,000 in overdue child support. Danny Platt accepted a life prison sentence. The only promise prosecutor Robert Moore made him was that the state would not seek to execute him.
"He liked to laugh a lot," the boy's mother, Daniella Powell, said of her boy. "He told me he loved me all day long. He was fun. And he can finally rest now."
Powell said that she agreed to the life sentence. Nobody, she believes, deserves to be killed, even the man who killed her son.
Ja'Shawn Powell adored his father, whom he visited on occasional weekends.
On the evening of Jan. 2, 2009, Platt came to pick the boy up for a visit. The toddler ran to the door, excited to see his daddy. Powell kissed him goodbye, and never saw him alive again.
Just before midnight, Platt took the boy to a park on Jackson Avenue, according to court records.
"He and his son sat on a bench and began talking to each other," the warrant for his arrest reads. "Mr. Platt suddenly grabbed his son and slashed his throat with a box cutter." Danny Platt pleaded guilty Thursday to first-degree murder for slitting his 2-year-old son's throat. He accepted a life prison sentence and avoided possible death.
Platt called Powell and told her that a woman had snatched the baby from his arms and ran. Then he called the police.
He told officers that a black SUV pulled up beside them, and three men with dreadlocks and AK-47s forced him and the boy onto the ground, according to court records. They called him "Johnny" and demanded money, he told officers. When he told the gunmen that he wasn't Johnny, they grabbed the child and sped away. Police issued a nationwide Amber Alert for the child.
But Platt's story stopped making sense. Officers noticed that he seemed "emotionless" and "did not appear concerned that his child was missing."
Police grew suspicious. His story changed -- the number of gunmen increased from three to four. He told obvious lies, that he didn't know his own mother's address, and that his cell phone was stolen by his attackers. He couldn't spell his own son's name.
He told detectives that his son's mother was "money hungry."
"Them people aren't worried about that child, they just want money," he said to officers. "I tell you think, they'll never see the $4,000 I owe them after today."
The child's mother said she knew Pratt her whole life and dated him only briefly, but got pregnant. The boy was born on Valentine's Day, 2006.
Powell applied for food stamps, which required that she identify his biological father. His paternity was confirmed with a blood test. The state deducted $100 a week from his paychecks from a French Quarter restaurant he cleaned.
Platt reportedly threatened Powell over his child-support debt of $4,000, vowing that he would kill them before paying it.
Ja'Shawn's 2-year-old body was found in a gym bag on Jan. 2, 2009, near a Central City playground in the 1900 block of Jackson Avenue. His throat had been slashed and he bled to death, the coroner said.
"I'm sorry about killing my baby," he told reporters as detectives led him to Central Lockup in 2009. "I had a lot of pressure on me ... I had a whole bunch of reasons."
Platt was charged with first-degree murder, and prosecutors filed their notice to seek the death penalty. In Louisiana, prosecutors must cite the aggravating circumstances to make a murder a capital case. They listed the "especially heinous, atrocious, cruel or depraved" nature of the killing, and that the victim was a child.
Platt, for a time, was found incompetent to proceed to trial and admitted to the East Louisiana Mental Health System for treatment. But after several months there, he was released, and doctors wrote the court that they believed he was faking a mental disorder. He lied, they wrote, that he did not know his own birthdate, or understand the charges he was facing.
As the capital case against him resumed, he "mainly stared at the floor," according to court records. He spoke little, "appearing depressed and less than cooperative." Platt dropped out of high school in the ninth grade because he wanted to do drugs and "hang on the streets," court records state. Through chronic drug abuse can influence mental health, doctors wrote, they never found any evidence of delusions or psychosis.
District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro said Platt was one of a half-dozen defendants in the last decade to plead guilty to first-degree murder and accept a life sentence. No one has been sent to death row from Orleans Parish since the 1990s.
Cannizzaro said the plea deal, which avoids the possibility of a decades-long appeals process in a capital case, was the best resolution for Platt's case.
"When a child is killed, it's always a very sad, a very difficult situation, even for us," Cannizzaro said. "This is a final solution. There is no appeal. He admits he is guilty. And the family does not have to relive these very horrible events."
Judge Keva Landrum-Johnson imposed the life sentence, without the possibility of parole. Powell said that she is glad her 4-year nightmare is ended. "I don't understand why, I will never understand why," she said. "I'll move forward now, but I can never move on."
Powell carried a photo of her son, sticking out his tongue at the camera.
She used to ask her boy how much he loved her, she told the judge. He would stretch his arms out straight and say, "Mommy, this much."
She fell against the wall and wept as she left the courtroom.
But because we grant donors all the full rights and responsibilities of fathers, this piece of sh** was on the hook for child support. In fact, Mom was REQUIRED to give his name if she was to get food stamps.
So of course, the sh** gets visitation too. And this is what happens.
We need to stop giving rights to sperm donors. The only donors who should have rights are the ones who are legally married to the mother and committed to providing for a family. Period.
And then we need to start funding social services at acceptable levels. This is crap.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2013/05/father_pleads_guilty_to_capifa.html
New Orleans father pleads guilty to capital murder for slitting 2-year-old son's throat
By Claire Galofaro, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune on May 02, 2013 at 11:17 AM, updated May 02, 2013 at 2:17 PM
A 26-year-old man pleaded guilty to capital murder in Criminal District Court Thursday morning, admitting that he slit his 2-year-old son's throat to avoid paying $4,000 in overdue child support. Danny Platt accepted a life prison sentence. The only promise prosecutor Robert Moore made him was that the state would not seek to execute him.
"He liked to laugh a lot," the boy's mother, Daniella Powell, said of her boy. "He told me he loved me all day long. He was fun. And he can finally rest now."
Powell said that she agreed to the life sentence. Nobody, she believes, deserves to be killed, even the man who killed her son.
Ja'Shawn Powell adored his father, whom he visited on occasional weekends.
On the evening of Jan. 2, 2009, Platt came to pick the boy up for a visit. The toddler ran to the door, excited to see his daddy. Powell kissed him goodbye, and never saw him alive again.
Just before midnight, Platt took the boy to a park on Jackson Avenue, according to court records.
"He and his son sat on a bench and began talking to each other," the warrant for his arrest reads. "Mr. Platt suddenly grabbed his son and slashed his throat with a box cutter." Danny Platt pleaded guilty Thursday to first-degree murder for slitting his 2-year-old son's throat. He accepted a life prison sentence and avoided possible death.
Platt called Powell and told her that a woman had snatched the baby from his arms and ran. Then he called the police.
He told officers that a black SUV pulled up beside them, and three men with dreadlocks and AK-47s forced him and the boy onto the ground, according to court records. They called him "Johnny" and demanded money, he told officers. When he told the gunmen that he wasn't Johnny, they grabbed the child and sped away. Police issued a nationwide Amber Alert for the child.
But Platt's story stopped making sense. Officers noticed that he seemed "emotionless" and "did not appear concerned that his child was missing."
Police grew suspicious. His story changed -- the number of gunmen increased from three to four. He told obvious lies, that he didn't know his own mother's address, and that his cell phone was stolen by his attackers. He couldn't spell his own son's name.
He told detectives that his son's mother was "money hungry."
"Them people aren't worried about that child, they just want money," he said to officers. "I tell you think, they'll never see the $4,000 I owe them after today."
The child's mother said she knew Pratt her whole life and dated him only briefly, but got pregnant. The boy was born on Valentine's Day, 2006.
Powell applied for food stamps, which required that she identify his biological father. His paternity was confirmed with a blood test. The state deducted $100 a week from his paychecks from a French Quarter restaurant he cleaned.
Platt reportedly threatened Powell over his child-support debt of $4,000, vowing that he would kill them before paying it.
Ja'Shawn's 2-year-old body was found in a gym bag on Jan. 2, 2009, near a Central City playground in the 1900 block of Jackson Avenue. His throat had been slashed and he bled to death, the coroner said.
"I'm sorry about killing my baby," he told reporters as detectives led him to Central Lockup in 2009. "I had a lot of pressure on me ... I had a whole bunch of reasons."
Platt was charged with first-degree murder, and prosecutors filed their notice to seek the death penalty. In Louisiana, prosecutors must cite the aggravating circumstances to make a murder a capital case. They listed the "especially heinous, atrocious, cruel or depraved" nature of the killing, and that the victim was a child.
Platt, for a time, was found incompetent to proceed to trial and admitted to the East Louisiana Mental Health System for treatment. But after several months there, he was released, and doctors wrote the court that they believed he was faking a mental disorder. He lied, they wrote, that he did not know his own birthdate, or understand the charges he was facing.
As the capital case against him resumed, he "mainly stared at the floor," according to court records. He spoke little, "appearing depressed and less than cooperative." Platt dropped out of high school in the ninth grade because he wanted to do drugs and "hang on the streets," court records state. Through chronic drug abuse can influence mental health, doctors wrote, they never found any evidence of delusions or psychosis.
District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro said Platt was one of a half-dozen defendants in the last decade to plead guilty to first-degree murder and accept a life sentence. No one has been sent to death row from Orleans Parish since the 1990s.
Cannizzaro said the plea deal, which avoids the possibility of a decades-long appeals process in a capital case, was the best resolution for Platt's case.
"When a child is killed, it's always a very sad, a very difficult situation, even for us," Cannizzaro said. "This is a final solution. There is no appeal. He admits he is guilty. And the family does not have to relive these very horrible events."
Judge Keva Landrum-Johnson imposed the life sentence, without the possibility of parole. Powell said that she is glad her 4-year nightmare is ended. "I don't understand why, I will never understand why," she said. "I'll move forward now, but I can never move on."
Powell carried a photo of her son, sticking out his tongue at the camera.
She used to ask her boy how much he loved her, she told the judge. He would stretch his arms out straight and say, "Mommy, this much."
She fell against the wall and wept as she left the courtroom.
Dad convicted in beating death of 2-year-old son; gets life in prison (St. Louis, Missouri)
The killer dad is identified as AARON LUCY.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/st-louis-man-who-beat-toddler-son-to-death-gets/article_d2e14b3a-4f92-58c8-bbe6-48f0ad01ca09.html
St. Louis man who beat toddler son to death gets life in prison
April 18, 2013 11:00 am • By Joel Currier
St. Louis man convicted of beating 2-year-old son to death
Jury says Aaron Lucy, 32, committed first-degree murder in assault that left bruises and scrapes on nearly every surface of the boy's body.
ST. LOUIS • A St. Louis man convicted of brutally beating his 2-year-old son to death was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Aaron Lucy, 32, was sentenced by St. Louis Circuit Judge Robin Vannoy. In January, a jury found Lucy guilty of first-degree murder and four felony counts of child abuse, evidence tampering and armed criminal action in the death of his son, Kyle Lucy.
Prosecutors said Lucy beat Kyle to death the afternoon or evening of Dec. 26, 2010, when the two were alone together for several hours at Lucy’s apartment in the 6900 block of Chippewa Street. Other family members were at a Christmas play.
Authorities said Lucy left bruises and scrapes on almost every part of the toddler’s body and caused two skull fractures and a fatal brain injury. Blood was found throughout the apartment, including on the back of a picture frame and a broken drawer that, along with an overturned television, had been thrown across the floor.
“What Aaron took from us has been devastating,” the boy’s mother, Amanda Newman, 30, of St. Louis County, said in court Thursday. “I don’t look at people the same way as I did before. I don’t look at people and wonder what they can offer me and my life. I now look at people and wonder what they will take from me or how they (will) hurt me. The world got a little darker that day.”
Lucy made no statements during Thursday’s sentencing. He appeared in court wearing an orange city jail uniform and still sporting a mustache, but with a much shorter haircut and without the pink hair dye noticeable in his jail booking photo.
Aaron Lucy’s mother, Gloria Lucy, told the court she believes her son is not “a monster.” She said he had received psychiatric treatment since middle school and suffered from bipolar disorder. She said a mental hospital would be a more effective sentence than prison.
“My son loved his kids dearly,” Gloria Lucy said. “He never mistreated Kyle. The way Kyle died wasn’t abuse, in my opinion. It was rage. I don’t know what happened that night. I really don’t.”
Newman says she, too, still doesn’t know why Aaron Lucy killed Kyle, and says the only time she saw him lose his temper was when he was intoxicated. She said she thought he had stopped drinking alcohol at least a year earlier, but she wonders whether he was drunk the night Kyle died.
Newman said she was satisfied with the life sentence because she believes it will keep Lucy away from their daughter, Abby, who is now 7. Newman said Abby now understands it was her father who ended Kyle’s life, but Newman shields her from the horror of how the boy died.
“When she gets older, she has every right to know every detail,” she said.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/st-louis-man-who-beat-toddler-son-to-death-gets/article_d2e14b3a-4f92-58c8-bbe6-48f0ad01ca09.html
St. Louis man who beat toddler son to death gets life in prison
April 18, 2013 11:00 am • By Joel Currier
St. Louis man convicted of beating 2-year-old son to death
Jury says Aaron Lucy, 32, committed first-degree murder in assault that left bruises and scrapes on nearly every surface of the boy's body.
ST. LOUIS • A St. Louis man convicted of brutally beating his 2-year-old son to death was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Aaron Lucy, 32, was sentenced by St. Louis Circuit Judge Robin Vannoy. In January, a jury found Lucy guilty of first-degree murder and four felony counts of child abuse, evidence tampering and armed criminal action in the death of his son, Kyle Lucy.
Prosecutors said Lucy beat Kyle to death the afternoon or evening of Dec. 26, 2010, when the two were alone together for several hours at Lucy’s apartment in the 6900 block of Chippewa Street. Other family members were at a Christmas play.
Authorities said Lucy left bruises and scrapes on almost every part of the toddler’s body and caused two skull fractures and a fatal brain injury. Blood was found throughout the apartment, including on the back of a picture frame and a broken drawer that, along with an overturned television, had been thrown across the floor.
“What Aaron took from us has been devastating,” the boy’s mother, Amanda Newman, 30, of St. Louis County, said in court Thursday. “I don’t look at people the same way as I did before. I don’t look at people and wonder what they can offer me and my life. I now look at people and wonder what they will take from me or how they (will) hurt me. The world got a little darker that day.”
Lucy made no statements during Thursday’s sentencing. He appeared in court wearing an orange city jail uniform and still sporting a mustache, but with a much shorter haircut and without the pink hair dye noticeable in his jail booking photo.
Aaron Lucy’s mother, Gloria Lucy, told the court she believes her son is not “a monster.” She said he had received psychiatric treatment since middle school and suffered from bipolar disorder. She said a mental hospital would be a more effective sentence than prison.
“My son loved his kids dearly,” Gloria Lucy said. “He never mistreated Kyle. The way Kyle died wasn’t abuse, in my opinion. It was rage. I don’t know what happened that night. I really don’t.”
Newman says she, too, still doesn’t know why Aaron Lucy killed Kyle, and says the only time she saw him lose his temper was when he was intoxicated. She said she thought he had stopped drinking alcohol at least a year earlier, but she wonders whether he was drunk the night Kyle died.
Newman said she was satisfied with the life sentence because she believes it will keep Lucy away from their daughter, Abby, who is now 7. Newman said Abby now understands it was her father who ended Kyle’s life, but Newman shields her from the horror of how the boy died.
“When she gets older, she has every right to know every detail,” she said.
Custodial dad accused of assaulting 3-month-old son; second time he's "suspected" of assaulting infant (University City, Missouri)
Whoa. So this is the second time dad JEREMY GILES has assaulted a helpless baby? And the first time he had "sole custody of the baby"?
Who dropped the ball here? Who allowed this sh** to be anywhere near an infant again, much less "caring" for one???
No mention of the mothers of these babies. It's like they never existed....
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/university-city-father-accused-of-hurting-infant-son/article_7ec2c7bc-0199-5870-bbaa-f70f1da31a81.html
University City father accused of hurting infant son
3 hours ago
• By Valerie Schremp Hahn
UPDATED at 12:10 p.m. with more information about previous charges.
UNIVERSITY CITY • A University City man has been charged with first-degree assault after admitting he intentionally dropped his three-month-old son, which caused serious injuries to the baby's head and torso.
It's the second time he's been accused of hurting an infant in a similar manner.
Jeremy Giles, 25, of the 7300 block of Balson Avenue, was charged Tuesday in St. Louis County Circuit Court.
University City Police said that on April 24, they responded to Children's Hospital for a possible child abuse case. Emergency room staffers told them the baby was brought there with the injuries, but police were unable to locate the father. The incident happened a day or two prior to the infant being brought in, police said.
The child had skull fractures and brain swelling, according to court documents.
"Doctors tell police that (the) victim's injuries required significant force and that a simple drop would not have caused these injuries," police said in court documents.
On Monday, Giles turned himself in and was arrested, and admitted he dropped the boy while at home. He was being held on a $200,000 cash-only bail.
In 2012, Giles was charged in Jefferson County with endangering the welfare of a child in a case involving a different child in Festus.
Giles' one-month-old son was hospitalized on Oct. 9, 2011, after suffering two black eyes and extensive bruising, according to a probable cause statement.
Giles, who had sole custody of the baby, told a detective the baby was injured when Giles tripped over a cat as he made a bottle and dropped the baby.
He changed his story as the interview progressed, court documents say, and then said he was carrying the baby upstairs when he tripped and dropped the baby twice.
A doctor at St. Louis Children's Hospital determined that the baby's injuries were not supported by Giles' explanations.
Giles is awaiting trial on the Jefferson County charge.
Leah Thorsen of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
Who dropped the ball here? Who allowed this sh** to be anywhere near an infant again, much less "caring" for one???
No mention of the mothers of these babies. It's like they never existed....
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/university-city-father-accused-of-hurting-infant-son/article_7ec2c7bc-0199-5870-bbaa-f70f1da31a81.html
University City father accused of hurting infant son
3 hours ago
• By Valerie Schremp Hahn
UPDATED at 12:10 p.m. with more information about previous charges.
UNIVERSITY CITY • A University City man has been charged with first-degree assault after admitting he intentionally dropped his three-month-old son, which caused serious injuries to the baby's head and torso.
It's the second time he's been accused of hurting an infant in a similar manner.
Jeremy Giles, 25, of the 7300 block of Balson Avenue, was charged Tuesday in St. Louis County Circuit Court.
University City Police said that on April 24, they responded to Children's Hospital for a possible child abuse case. Emergency room staffers told them the baby was brought there with the injuries, but police were unable to locate the father. The incident happened a day or two prior to the infant being brought in, police said.
The child had skull fractures and brain swelling, according to court documents.
"Doctors tell police that (the) victim's injuries required significant force and that a simple drop would not have caused these injuries," police said in court documents.
On Monday, Giles turned himself in and was arrested, and admitted he dropped the boy while at home. He was being held on a $200,000 cash-only bail.
In 2012, Giles was charged in Jefferson County with endangering the welfare of a child in a case involving a different child in Festus.
Giles' one-month-old son was hospitalized on Oct. 9, 2011, after suffering two black eyes and extensive bruising, according to a probable cause statement.
Giles, who had sole custody of the baby, told a detective the baby was injured when Giles tripped over a cat as he made a bottle and dropped the baby.
He changed his story as the interview progressed, court documents say, and then said he was carrying the baby upstairs when he tripped and dropped the baby twice.
A doctor at St. Louis Children's Hospital determined that the baby's injuries were not supported by Giles' explanations.
Giles is awaiting trial on the Jefferson County charge.
Leah Thorsen of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
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