Police: Illinois Man Beat His Girlfriend's Son to Death While She Served in Iraq
@whiteheather39 (24403)
United States
May 27, 2007 11:28am CST
How low can some humans sink? The mother is serving her country in Iraq now she comes to home for the death of her 4 year old. I think this crime deserves the death penalty. The child was beaten for two days and the sicko will not tell why he beat the child!! What do you think the penalty should be?
A man beat his girlfriend's 4-year-old son to death after she left the boy in his care while she was deployed to Iraq, police said.
Donell Parker, 23, was charged Friday with first-degree murder in the death of Cameron Smith. The boy was found dead in his bed Thursday in a suburb south of Chicago.
Parker told police he beat the boy, but would not say why, said Calumet City police Chief Patrick O'Meara.
Cameron was punched in the head, stomach and chest, and whipped with a belt from Tuesday to Wednesday evening, O'Meara said. An autopsy found he died of blunt-force trauma to the abdomen and head, O'Meara said.
The boy's 7-year-old sister and 8-year-old brother had also been in Parker's care, O'Meara said. They were put in the custody of their maternal grandparents after Cameron was found dead.
Cameron's mother, Sgt. Lavada Smith, 28, was headed back to Illinois Friday after spending only ten hours at her new duty station in Iraq.
Parker was scheduled to appear Saturday in bond court in suburban Markham, Ill. An official at the Cook County Circuit Court on Saturday could not immediately identify Parker's lawyer.
Full Story
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275676,00.html
5 people like this
10 responses
@herrbaggs (1308)
• United States
27 May 07
I think thet ought to send him to Iraq to look for I.E.D.s while riding a bicycle.
4 people like this
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
27 May 07
My question is why didnt the grand parents have kids in the first place why let boyfriend take care of them? Would have been different if it was their father wouldnt you say!?
But I think he needs to be hung for doing this shot what ever they still do in Ill.
3 people like this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
27 May 07
Lakota that was the first thought that came to my mind. Why did the grandparents let a stranger take care of their grandchildren?
2 people like this
@JC1969 (1224)
• United States
28 May 07
I think there will be more to unravel from this. It is obvious that the Mother and even the father, who is also deployed in Iraq did not file the proper legal paperwork with the base they are with. When both parents are military and have to deploy during the same time, the base generally has them file legal papers that document what is to become of the children while they are deployed--If this mother gave the boyfriend guardianship she may have some accountability in this as well--because you know child abuse is generally not something that just starts out of nowhere, I am sure there were signs of it before she left--she's only been gone a short while and she's only been with the boyfriend a year.
Most of the time, legal (on base)would council against giving guardianship authorization to someone that is not a family member--not that it doesn't happen I am sure.
2 people like this
@MsTickle (25180)
• Australia
28 May 07
What a tradgedy. I have so many questions leaping to my mind, I'm so dumfounded. I'm thinking there is going to be a lot of ugly come out of this story. Those kids should not have been left with that man. The mother would have known he was not a suitable person. He didn't become this devil in an instant...he would have had signs of violence and cruelty prior to this.
I just don't understand how things can be so very bad.
3 people like this
@honeyangel (1991)
•
28 May 07
i dont know how any person can do this to a child,this so called person should spend a long,long time in jail.i hope he get what he deserves in jail
3 people like this
@KissThis (3003)
• United States
28 May 07
When I first read this story in our local newspaper yesterday I had several thoughts come to my mind. The first is like everyone else. Why were the children left with the boyfriend? She had been with this man the past year, did she not know what type of person he really was? And why did he do this to an innocent child? He didn't even try yo offer up an excuse. I don't think that there is a punishment severe enough for what he did.
3 people like this
@idowrite72 (2213)
• United States
28 May 07
Maybe the child's mother should be given the choice of the punishment? As a mother and grandmother, who lost a grandchild to SIDS, I can't imagine losing one to such ignorance and cruelty. He deserves to die, as well, and in a painful manner, as the child no doubt did.
3 people like this
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
28 May 07
That really is terrible!!! I can't believe that anyone would do it, yet things like that are reported in the news all the time. DARN!!! That's scary, and sick. I definitely think that guy deserves to die. He also deserves torture!!
2 people like this
@jennybianca (12912)
• Australia
28 May 07
Life in jail. No remission. There is nothing more I can say about this. He deserves max penalty.
The poor Mother. I hope she has a lot of support when she returns from Iraq. And perhaps she will qualify for the victims of crime compensation.
@urbangirl (1456)
• Australia
28 May 07
Oh my God, the poor mother - how much pain can someone take. As if serving in a war is not distressing enough, to have to deal with...this! What a terrible, terrible thing to happen.
3 people like this
@Lifez2short (4962)
• United States
28 May 07
OMG I think that they should let the Military beat the poo out of him. Turn that loser over to the mother crew and have them beat on him for 2 days. What kind of sick person does this to a child. And why will he not say why he did it. Not that the reason matters much. But like I sadi let the mothers crew beat on him for 2 days.
