According to the court documents, the 28-year-old man was arrested on Sunday. The man stands accused of viciously beating his girlfriend’s 11-month-old son to death. Prosecutors say the 28-year-old suspect is charged with one count each of capital murder of a person under ten years of age, aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, and injuring a child with the intent to cause severe bodily injury. The child’s mother was also indicted after prosecutors say she failed to protect her children from abuse.
The 28-year-old man from Texas, Joshua Deshaun Lowe, has been arrested for allegedly killing 11-month-old Javontae Neeley. The boy’s mother, Christy Wedgeworth, was charged with one count each of injuring a child by omission and injury to a child with serious bodily injury by omission.
The 11-month-old boy was taken to a hospital on July 11. Lowe told medical personnel that the child had choked on a hot dog. But, the medical personnel noticed the infant’s physical injuries. The injuries included severe trauma to the head and multiple broken bones in various stages of repair. Doctors were able to stabilize the child enough so he could be transferred to Arkansas Children’s Hospital, where he died two days later .
The medical personnel call 911. Lowe told investigators that he dropped the infant after the child threw up on him, saying the boy then fell backwards and hit his head on the table. Doctor from the Arkansas Children’s Hospital on July 12 told police that the 11-month-old child was suffering from injuries that included abusive head trauma, subdural hemorrhage, cerebral edema, retinal hemorrhages, healing rib fractures, and bruising.
The doctor also told authorities that the victim’s brain and eye bleeding was consistent with being violently shaken and then thrown into a hard surface. The infant’s mother told authorities that she had witnessed Lowe abuse both of her kids on numerous occasions.
She told police that ‘Lowe hit her son in the face at least ten times while wearing boxing gloves.’ Lowe faces death by lethal injection or life without parole. The infant’s mother faces up to life in prison. This is a developing story and it will be updated as new information become available.