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CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (TCD) — A jury found a 22-year-old man guilty of abusing and fatally drowning his girlfriend’s young son with special needs after he became upset with the child during his bath.
The Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office announced the ruling Monday, Feb. 5, convicting Hunter Locke-Hughes of first-degree child abuse and involuntary manslaughter in the drowning death of his girlfriend’s 6-year-old child, identified by the Macomb Daily as Terrance “Terry” Adams.
Locke-Hughes’ sentencing is set for Wednesday, March 13, and he faces up to life in prison for the child abuse charge and 15 years for involuntary manslaughter. In addition to child abuse, Locke-Hughes was initially charged with felony murder but was convicted of the lesser charge.
On the evening of Dec. 28, 2021, Locke-Hughes, who was 19 at the time, got upset with Adams because he was misbehaving during his bath and threw up after his mother had left. Locke-Hughes reportedly held the child under at least 6 inches of water, killing him.
According to the Macomb Daily, Adams suffered from CHARGE syndrome, which the National Library of Medicine says is an inherited disorder that stands for “coloboma, heart disease, atresia of the choanae, retarded growth and mental development, genital anomalies, and ear malformations and hearing loss.” The child was reportedly unable to speak, couldn’t see in one eye, and had to use a stomach tube because he wasn’t able to swallow.
An autopsy determined the boy sustained 15 to 20 bruises on his head, shoulder blades, back, and near his buttocks. Based on his head bruises, prosecutors argued the boy made efforts to survive the drowning, the Macomb Daily reports.
Lock-Hughes reportedly confessed to police he held the boy underwater by his shoulders, but he argued that he kept his head above water with his fingers.
According to the Macomb Daily, Locke-Hughes called 911 after the drowning and was upset while on the phone. The medical examiner testified in court that the child likely died by the time responders arrived on the scene because paramedics struggled to get Adams’ mouth open due to his tight jaw.
Officials reportedly observed a large amount of feces in the bathtub, which likely happened when the boy died.
The Macomb Daily reports Locke-Hughes cared for the 6-year-old and the child’s 23-month-old sister. Family members reportedly believed Adams had been abused before and called Child Protective Services, who launched three investigations into the claims, but they weren’t substantiated.
According to the Macomb Daily, Adams had been removed from the home a month before his drowning but had been returned.
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