A father is accused of hitting his 3-month-old daughter in the face with a closed fist “in a fit of frustration” because she would not stop crying, police said.
The baby, Asia Cathey, was pronounced dead early Tuesday, hours after the 9:02 p.m. attack inside the family’s apartment.
For now, her father, Shavale Johnson, 24, is held on a $200,000 bond at the Hamilton County jail on a child endangering charge.
That likely will be upgraded to more serious charges that could include murder after coroner’s officials determine the infant’s cause of death, prosecutors said in court Tuesday when Johnson made a brief appearance.
The infant’s death was immediately considered suspicious and remains under investigation, said Sgt. Mike Miller of the Cincinnati Police Department’s Homicide Unit.
Johnson admitted to police he punched the baby because she would not stop crying “in a fit of frustration,” police wrote in court records.
The baby’s mother called 911 about midnight, and the child was taken to the hospital while Johnson, remained behind at the family’s Mcfarlan Road residence, said Lt. Tim Brown, the night chief.
Source: USA Today | Jennifer Edwards Baker, The Cincinnati Enquirer
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