Spring Lake Park baby in coma; mom's boyfriend charged
The man said he knocked the crying 7-month-old boy to floor Thursday, then slapped him, officials said.
Print this story
E-mail this story
Save to del.icio.us
Share on newsvine
Share on DiggA baby was clinging to life Friday as his mother's boyfriend was charged with hitting and knocking the 7-month-old off a bed.
The baby boy was in critical condition Friday at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale after the incident at a Spring Lake Park apartment that his mother and her boyfriend shared. The boy, who underwent surgery for a skull fracture and brain bleeding, was comatose and in intensive care Friday afternoon, officials said.
The boyfriend, James C. McCartney, 24, is being held in the Anoka County jail, pending a bail hearing Monday, said prosecutor Bryan Lindberg.
According to the charges:
The baby's mother was at work when McCartney, her boyfriend of three months, called 911 about 6 p.m. Thursday. He initially told Spring Lake Park police that the baby fell off a bed and was unresponsive. Police became suspicious when they saw head bruises that were more severe than a fall onto a carpeted floor would cause, said Lt. Paul Sommer of the Anoka County Sheriff's Office.
After a long interview, the boyfriend admitted he got angry and frustrated with the baby's crying and hit him on the head, knocking him onto the floor. He then slapped the baby, the complaint said. Neighbors reported seeing other bruises on the baby in past months, Sommer said.
"At this point we don't know if the child will live or die," he said. Such cases, while not uncommon, are "kind of a tough deal," he said.
The baby's father, Josh Jeanson, 25, said he went to the hospital Friday afternoon to see his son. He said doctors had to operate on the boy's skull to allow blood to drain.
Jeanson said he split up with the boy's mother last fall. He said the boy had no bruises when he last saw him three months ago, before the new boyfriend showed up. The baby's mother could not be reached.
"I think it is messed up that you can't trust people. It takes a traumatic event for somebody to realize what's happening to my son," Jeanson said.
Jim Adams • 612-673-7658
