A teenager has been jailed after police say he killed his newborn son to get out of paying for child support.
17-year-old Caleb Blake Brown has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his son, Emerson Ziesmer.
The incident occurred in Carrolton, Texas on August 9, when Brown was allegedly left alone briefly with the infant.
Afterwards, Brown and the baby’s mother, Rachel Ziesmer, took Emerson to the emergency room after police said the Rachel noticed the infant was “pale and had significant bruising around his abdomen.”
Emerson was subsequently transferred to Children’s Medical Center of Dallas, but died from his injuries.
An autopsy indicated that Emerson had a lacerated liver, several misplaced ribs and an abrasion on the back of his head.
He was just 24 days old when he died.
Police said: “While he was briefly alone with the infant on the afternoon of Aug. 9, Brown alleged in a probable cause affidavit for his arrest warrant that he squeezed him and repeatedly hurled him into the air, eventually hitting the ceiling fan.”
According to Brown’s probable cause affidavit, investigators learned from cellphones and social media records that Brown was angry with the baby’s mother “for not aborting [the baby] or putting him up for adoption.”
Brown was also “concerned about having to pay child support,” the affidavit read.
Officer also obtained video footage that allegedly showed Brown “repeatedly” raising his middle finger toward the baby and would refer to him as “ugly,” and a “little dumb baby.”
Rachel noted this was not the first time abuse had occurred, as when Emerson was around 10 days old she heard a loud wail and walked in to find Brown “squeezing him around his stomach,” the arrest affidavit states.
Then on August 9 when Brown was left alone with Emerson for “a couple of minutes” while Rachel was changing in the bathroom, same thing occurred.
Rachel told police that after hearing her son “crying really loud,” she came out of the bathroom and found Brown holding him.
About an hour later, the mother noticed that the child was “turning green,” and saw sweat beads on his face and realised the baby had cold hands and feet and severe bruising over his body.
Brown allegedly told police that he squeezed the baby’s stomach and threw the infant into the air “five times” out of boredom.
He later reportedly admitted that after the baby hit his head on the ceiling fan, he squeezed the infant again and believes the final squeeze is what killed him.
Brown remains behind bars on a $2 million bond.
