3 month old, Owen (June 3, 2009) |
SAN DIEGO -- A Camp Pendleton Marine pleaded guilty Tuesday to dropping and shaking his infant son, causing irreversible damage to the child's right eye and brain injuries.
James Lewis Charles, 31, will be sentenced to nine years in state prison on Dec. 2.
A sheriff's detective said during a preliminary hearing that Charles admitted tossing his son onto a hard surface 30 times.
Prosecutors say the baby suffered brain injuries, is now blind in one eye and has developmental problems.
Charles' defense attorney argued that the injuries may have been caused by an accident but the judge called that explanation "absurd."
Detectives say Charles admitted dropping the child from as high as 4 feet into a "giddy-up" playpen area at least 30 times, five times when he was angry.
Each time he dropped the child, Charles heard a "thump" and knew the baby was injured but he didn't care, the detective said the defendant told him.
"His wife had told him he was too rough with Owen," the detective testified.
"He said it hurt (the baby), but he continued doing it."
Charles also admitted shaking the baby "for seconds" on at least two occasions, Gurrola testified.
"He knew it was potentially harmful, but did it anyway," the detective said.
After an initial interview at the hospital last Dec. 19, Charles told the detective he had an anger management problem and took full responsibility for his actions, saying they were unintentional, Gurrola testified.
The baby also had a black eye when he was about a month or two months old, according to court testimony.
Asked why he dropped the child, Charles said it was because the baby was fussy and he (Charles) was clumsy, the detective said.
James Lewis Charles, 31, will be sentenced to nine years in state prison on Dec. 2.
A sheriff's detective said during a preliminary hearing that Charles admitted tossing his son onto a hard surface 30 times.
Prosecutors say the baby suffered brain injuries, is now blind in one eye and has developmental problems.
Charles' defense attorney argued that the injuries may have been caused by an accident but the judge called that explanation "absurd."
Detectives say Charles admitted dropping the child from as high as 4 feet into a "giddy-up" playpen area at least 30 times, five times when he was angry.
Each time he dropped the child, Charles heard a "thump" and knew the baby was injured but he didn't care, the detective said the defendant told him.
"His wife had told him he was too rough with Owen," the detective testified.
"He said it hurt (the baby), but he continued doing it."
Charles also admitted shaking the baby "for seconds" on at least two occasions, Gurrola testified.
"He knew it was potentially harmful, but did it anyway," the detective said.
After an initial interview at the hospital last Dec. 19, Charles told the detective he had an anger management problem and took full responsibility for his actions, saying they were unintentional, Gurrola testified.
The baby also had a black eye when he was about a month or two months old, according to court testimony.
Asked why he dropped the child, Charles said it was because the baby was fussy and he (Charles) was clumsy, the detective said.
