TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Panhandle prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for a man accused of killing his girlfriend’s 10-month-old son.
The Tallahassee Democrat (http://on.tdo.com/1UBmGjh) reports that Assistant State Attorney Jack Campbell filed the notice against 26-year-old Dajuan Barnes last week. He was arrested last month.
Authorities say Barnes called 911 when the infant stopped breathing and became unresponsive.
Medical examiners determined that the infant died of a broken spinal cord and a severed aorta. They said that the infant had been slammed against something so forcefully that it broke the baby’s back and caused him to bleed to death within seconds.
Barnes was indicted on a first-degree murder charge several weeks after his initial arrest.
He has also been charged with aggravated child abuse.
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Information from: Tallahassee (Fla.) Democrat, http://www.tdo.com
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