Fort Worth father of 5 suspect in youngest son’s death, facing capital murder charge
The father of a 2-month-old boy who died last week of skull fractures has been charged with capital murder.
Joseph Matthew Welborn, 26, of Fort Worth, is being held in the Tarrant County County Jail in lieu of $250,000. His son, Christian Welborn, died Dec. 21 shortly after being brought by ambulance to Cook Children’s Medical Center with what was believed to be a depressed skull fracture.
Sansom Park police had responded to a 911 call from the 5200 block of Azle Avenue about a 2-month-old child who was unresponsive after being dropped by a 4-year-old sibling.
Officials say the parents gave varying accounts to investigators and that the father changed his story two times after first telling authorities he was never alone with the child that day.
At first, the baby’s mother, Rosalinda Lopez, told investigators that she saw the 4-year-old drop the baby about two to three feet onto the floor when she arrived home from the grocery store. She told Detective Michael Weber of Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office that her husband was sleeping when the baby was dropped but later changed her story to say he was outside getting groceries, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.
An autopsy revealed that the infant had two skull fractures from possibly up to three impacts — injuries that a fall could not have caused, according to the affidavit. Dr. Tasha Greenberg, Tarrant County deputy medical examiner, stated she did not believe a child could generate the force that caused the fractures, Weber wrote.
Coincidentally, a Child Protective Services investigator had been at the family’s home about two hours earlier on Dec. 21 conducting follow-up on a neglectful supervision complaint. The CPS investigator told Weber that the baby was fine when she visited about 2:45 p.m. and that Joseph Wellborn had been asleep inside the trailer during her visit.
“All was well with the baby, the baby was tracking and up, awake, alert and active,” Tarrant Conty Sheriff Bill Waybourn said during a press conference on Friday.
The baby’s maternal grandfather told investigators he was still outside after arriving home from the store when he heard his daughter scream from inside the trailer, “He dropped the baby,” according to the affidavit.
He said he and Joseph Welborn went into the trailer to find Christian was having trouble breathing. The grandfather said he attempted to blow into the baby’s mouth while his daughter called 911.
Sansom Park police summoned the crime scene unit with the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department, said David McClelland, chief of staff with the sheriff’s department.
Tarrant County detectives took over the investigation because of their access to more resources, McClelland said.
Joseph Welborn fathered five children, Waybourn said. Marissa Gonzales, a CPS spokeswoman, said Friday that three siblings — boys ages 7, 6 and 2 — were removed from the home and placed in foster care on Dec. 22. The 4-year-old did not live with Welborn, Waybourn said.
Waybourn said the investigation is continuing.
This story was originally published December 28, 2018 at 10:33 AM.
