8-Month-Old Boy Dies, Mother And Boyfriend Charged With Murder

The death of an 8-month-old boy is the second infant reported dead this week as a result of alleged child abuse, and according to court documents, the boy's mother from North Linden and her boyfriend have been charged with murder in connection with the death, Yahoo News reported.

According to court documents, Marquel Smith died as a result of blunt force trauma, and Columbus police charged Savanna Dawn Dawson, 23, and Kyrios March Jr., 24, on Wednesday, Jan. 11.

According to authorities, neither suspect has been detained, and they may have left the Columbus region as of Thursday, Jan. 12.

Police said Dawson is Smith's mother and March is her boyfriend but not the boy's father.

An 8-month-old baby who was not breathing was reported at the couple's house in the 2400 block of Hiawatha Street around 6:50 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 9. The baby was taken by paramedics to Nationwide Children's Hospital, where he died.

Homicide detectives were notified after doctors discovered and an autopsy confirmed the boy had multiple broken bones and healing fractures.

Detectives were informed by doctors that Marquel had a brain bleed and wounds on his skull. Police further stated that his fractures were not accidental but were consistent with abuse.

March and Dawson were first held and questioned by police, and both claimed they had no idea how the boy had sustained his injuries. They speculated that the injuries might have been brought on by a different kid who lived there.

In a similar case this week, the Nationwide Children's Hospital informed detectives that a 5-year-old boy died from "prolonged starvation or massively inadequate feeding," with either circumstance representing life-threatening medical neglect. As a result, Columbus police charged 44-year-old Saado Adam, the boy's mother, of the city's Minerva Park neighborhood, with felony child endangerment on Monday.

The youngster was declared dead on Monday at about 1 p.m. at Nationwide Children's, though police did not release his identity.

According to court documents, Adam allegedly told detectives during an interview that the child had been unwell for several weeks and hadn't been able to walk since November. According to detectives, Adam admitted to them that she had not taken her child to the doctor because voices in her head had advised her against doing so.