Dad pleads guilty to abuse in death of 1-year-old in ND, feds say. ‘Utterly cruel’
A North Dakota father has pleaded guilty to charges related to the “heartrending death” of his 1-year-old son and the abuse of his 3-year-old son, officials said.
The 29-year-old St. Michael man pleaded guilty to three counts of child abuse in Indian country, according to an Oct. 9 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of North Dakota.
He faces up to 40 years in prison, officials said.
“The way this toddler was treated was horrific and shameful,” U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider said in the release.
McClatchy News contacted the man’s attorney Oct. 10 for comment but did not immediately hear back. To protect the identity of the surviving child involved in the case, McClatchy News is not naming the man.
2023 Death
Police responded Feb. 18, 2023, at about 6 a.m. to a 911 call from the child’s mother saying that her son was not breathing, according to court records.
The 1-year-old boy was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, court records show.
The child’s father told authorities his son was injured when a flashlight fell on him, officials said.
An autopsy determined his cause of death to be “battered child,” revealing “multiple repeated injuries” at various stages of healing, with untreated internal injuries leading to infection and sepsis, and ultimately his death, according to court records.
The child had injuries that “would have made movement painful,” including several rib fractures, and a complete spinal fracture, court records show.
His internal lacerations would have kept the child “from being hungry, eating or keeping food down,” according to court records.
Officials said the boy’s mother noticed his abdominal swelling “for two weeks but failed to seek medical care.” She also said he had been repeatedly vomiting, according to prosecutors.
The father is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 18.
The mother, who pleaded guilty Aug. 16 to charges of accessory after the fact, child abuse and child neglect, is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 22, according to the release.
In a separate Aug. 22 news release about the mother’s guilty plea, Schneider called the abuse and death of the 1-year-old “utterly cruel.”
St. Michael is located on the Spirit Lake Reservation, about a 160-mile drive northwest from Fargo.
This story was originally published October 10, 2024 at 2:35 PM with the headline "Dad pleads guilty to abuse in death of 1-year-old in ND, feds say. ‘Utterly cruel’."
