North Carolina man beat up 7-month-old son so badly his stomach swelled up from internal injuries before death
North Carolina police have revealed how a battered baby's stomach swelled in front of his grandmother's eyes just moments before he died after being allegedly beaten up by his father. According to an autopsy report, the seven-month-old infant succumbed to brutal blunt force injuries to his abdomen and chest.
Now, the boy's 19-year-old father, Christion Vaughn Jones, has been charged with murder and felony intentional child abuse causing serious bodily injury in connection with the July 2019 death of his son Christon Vaughn Jones Jr, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.
According to police records, Christion Jones Sr. has registered addresses on Franciscan Drive in Winston-Salem and Merritt Drive in Greensboro. He is currently being held in Forsyth County Jail with no bond allowed.
The infant, according to an arrest warrant, was found to have a torn liver, broken ribs, a torn small intestine, a torn pancreas, a tear in a vein carrying blood to his heart, torn adrenal glands, and several other internal injuries.
Furthermore, the autopsy report added that the infant also had bruises on his scalp, face, and lower back.
According to a summary of findings contained in the autopsy report, little Christion Vaughn Jones Jr. woke up crying on the morning of July 4, 2019, after having fallen asleep in his parents' bedroom.
His father took the baby downstairs and gave him a bottle of formula assuming he was hungry, the report says. Jones gave the bottle to his baby son and placed him on his back in a chair, according to the medical examiner's report. However, the bottle dropped and the tot was found unresponsive, per the investigative and autopsy reports.
It is not clear when Jones Sr allegedly beat the baby and with what motive.
The investigative report then goes on to state how little Christion's grandmother immediately began performing CPR, but to her horror, his stomach became distended.
Emergency medical personnel and other services were summoned to the residence and tried everything they could to save the infant, before rushing him to Brenner’s Children Hospital. According to the autopsy report, the child was declared dead at 11:03 am on July 4, 2019, despite the doctors' best efforts.
Deputies from Forsyth County had also responded to the residence, located in the 1900 block of Franciscan Drive at the Twin City apartment complex off Peters Creek Parkway, at 10:09 am that morning. They revealed last year that upon arrival they found six adults in the house -- all relatives of the infant. However, they noted there were no other children at home at the time.
Having said that, little Christion Vaughn Jones Jr.'s death marked the 12th homicide of 2019 in the area.
Jones Sr., who was arrested on Wednesday in the 100th block of West Fifth Street in Winston-Salem, is now scheduled to appear in Forsyth District Court on April 30. As of now, it is unclear if he has an attorney who can comment on his behalf.
Anyone who has information about the infant’s death is asked to call Winston-Salem police at 336-773-7700 or Crime Stoppers at 336-727-2800.