Dante
July 27th, 2007, 06:58 PM
CINCINNATI -- A judge ruled that a teenager will be tried as an adult for the death of an 18-month-old boy whose mother testified that he was repeatedly swung like a bat against the wall when the teen became frustrated during toilet training.
Derris Smith, 18, the mother's live-in boyfriend, has been charged with murder. He was 17 on June 27, when, police said, he delivered the beating that led to Malakai Glenn's death four days later.
The impact of the child hitting the wall left drywall stuck to his head and cracked a wooden door, said the boy's mother Sasha Glenn, 20, who cried often during her testimony Wednesday.
"When I picked him up he put his arms around me," Glenn said. "He was staring at me for a minute with big eyes, then he went limp." The child never regained consciousness and died after being hospitalized at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
Following the Wednesday hearing, Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Thomas Lipps said Smith should be tried as adult. The case will now go to a grand jury.
During the court hearing, Smith and his parents, who sat by their son, also cried.
Glenn said the ordeal began when Smith put the toddler on a child's toilet that was in the room where the three were sharing a bed and the couple went to sleep. She said Smith became angry when he saw the child resting his head on a pillow that she had placed on a stool in front of the toilet.
When Glenn said the boy had had enough, Smith told her, "Don't tell me what to do," she testified. "He picked him up and hit his head on the wall" before dropping him on the bed.
The couple tried to get the child to drink water and put him in the shower before calling 911.
Glenn said she had initially told police her son fell down stairs because she didn't want Smith to get in trouble, but changed her story when the child didn't recover.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said it has not been determined whether Glenn will be charged in connection with the death.
According to testimony, Glenn is pregnant with Smith's child, and Malakai Glenn was not his son.
Smith is being held in the Hamilton County Juvenile Detention Center on $500,000 bond.
Distributed by Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Derris Smith, 18, the mother's live-in boyfriend, has been charged with murder. He was 17 on June 27, when, police said, he delivered the beating that led to Malakai Glenn's death four days later.
The impact of the child hitting the wall left drywall stuck to his head and cracked a wooden door, said the boy's mother Sasha Glenn, 20, who cried often during her testimony Wednesday.
"When I picked him up he put his arms around me," Glenn said. "He was staring at me for a minute with big eyes, then he went limp." The child never regained consciousness and died after being hospitalized at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
Following the Wednesday hearing, Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Thomas Lipps said Smith should be tried as adult. The case will now go to a grand jury.
During the court hearing, Smith and his parents, who sat by their son, also cried.
Glenn said the ordeal began when Smith put the toddler on a child's toilet that was in the room where the three were sharing a bed and the couple went to sleep. She said Smith became angry when he saw the child resting his head on a pillow that she had placed on a stool in front of the toilet.
When Glenn said the boy had had enough, Smith told her, "Don't tell me what to do," she testified. "He picked him up and hit his head on the wall" before dropping him on the bed.
The couple tried to get the child to drink water and put him in the shower before calling 911.
Glenn said she had initially told police her son fell down stairs because she didn't want Smith to get in trouble, but changed her story when the child didn't recover.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said it has not been determined whether Glenn will be charged in connection with the death.
According to testimony, Glenn is pregnant with Smith's child, and Malakai Glenn was not his son.
Smith is being held in the Hamilton County Juvenile Detention Center on $500,000 bond.
Distributed by Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.