CAMERON RUSSELL - 2 yo (2010) - Jackson MI

Two people were to be arraigned today on murder and
child-abuse charges stemming from the Jan. 20 death of
2-year-old Cameron Russell.Jackson police arrested a woman, 21, and a man, 23, both of
Jackson, on Monday afternoon, said Jackson Police Deputy
Chief John Holda. They face charges of first-degree child
abuse and felony murder.
Neither Holda nor Jackson County Assistant Prosecutor
Allison Bates would release the names of those arrested
because they have not been arraigned. Both were in jail,
Holda said.
Cameron suffered a head injury Jan. 19 and died the
following day at the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott
Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor.
Police said the boyfriend of Cameron's mother told them
he was carrying the boy when he tripped and Cameron hit his
head on a door jamb. At the time, police said the man was
watching the boy while his mother was at work.

Christy Brown


A 21-year-old woman whose former boyfriend is accused of killing her
2-year-old son voluntarily gave up parental rights to her surviving
6-year-old daughter today.

Both Christy Brown and the girl’s father, Nicholas Trepka, 26, signed release forms, and Circuit Judge
Susan Beebe terminated their rights to the girl. She is now in the
custody of Trepka’s mother, Barbara Trepka.

Barbara Trepka likely will adopt the girl, Beebe said.

“My mom is a great mother. I trust her. She raised me,” Nicholas Trepka said.
Both he and Brown said it would be in the best interests of their daughter to keep her from their care.

They are not forbidden from seeing the girl, but if Trepka or another
adoptive parent were to think they should not, they have no right to
request otherwise, Beebe said.
Children’s Protective Services took
the girl from Brown in January after Brown’s son, Cameron Russell, went
to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor on Jan. 19.

His head had forcibly hit a fixed surface, fracturing his skull, causing
his brain to swell and inducing the collection of blood beneath the skin
on the left side of his head, a doctor testified in February.

The boy also had a collarbone fracture and multiple bruises. He died Jan. 20.

“(Brown’s daughter) is at imminent risk of harm if left in the care and custody
of Christy Brown,” read the petition, filed the day of Cameron’s death.

At the time the child was injured, Brown’s then-boyfriend, Ronald Woodard
II, 23, was taking care of Cameron. Woodard told police he was carrying
the child when he tripped and Cameron hit his head on a door jamb.

In February, Woodard was charged with felony murder and first-degree child
abuse. Prosecutors allege he abused the boy, inflicting the injuries
that led to his death. The case is scheduled for trial next month.

Brown faced the same charges, but District Judge R. Darryl Mazur dismissed them in February.

Several people testified they had concerns about Woodard and his treatment of Cameron. They said they told Brown this.

Brown might have known about abuse, but did not want the abuse to occur or help it to happen, Mazur said in February.

It was not until later that Nicholas Trepka was added to the protective services petition. He is not Cameron’s father.

“Nicholas Trepka is also unable to provide proper care and custody for (his
daughter) with a long history of drug abuse and failed attempts at
rehabilitation,” stated an amended petition filed in June.

AGAIN AND AGAIN. How did Christy Brown get off all charges. She knew her boyfriend was abusing her son and did nothing. I feel so sorry for the 6 year old girl. If her selfish mother had adopted her to a loving family when she had her at 15 she may have had a wonderful life.

Medical examiner testifies in case against Jackson mother, boyfriend charged in death of 2 year old
Published: Tuesday, February 23, 2010, 3:11 PM Updated: Wednesday, February 24, 2010, 9:12 AM
Cameron Russell’s head forcibly hit a fixed surface, fracturing his skull, causing his brain to swell and inducing the collection of blood beneath the skin on the left side of his head.
These injuries killed the 2-year-old, Washtenaw County Medical Examiner Dr. Bader Cassin testified Tuesday during a preliminary examination in the cases against Cameron’s mother, Christy Brown, and her boyfriend, Ronald Woodard II.
The exam is to continue March 4 before Jackson County District Judge R. Darryl Mazur.
Both Woodard, 23, and Brown, 21, are charged with felony murder and first-degree child abuse.
Assistant Prosecutor Allison Bates alleges Woodard abused and killed Cameron, who suffered the injuries while Woodard cared for him Jan. 19.
Doctors determined his brain was dead the same day, but Cameron remained on life support until his death Jan. 20 at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, Cassin testified.
Bates alleges Brown is an “aider and abettor” based on her knowledge of the abuse of her son, who spent weekends with his father, Jerrold Russell.
Woodard’s former close friend, Brandon Michael Warnsley, testified he expressed concerns to Brown about Cameron and Woodard.
Warnsley said Woodard, who lived with Brown, told Warnsley he did not want to be at Brown’s home on Backus Street while Cameron was there. The boy cried whenever Woodard was around, Warnsley and others testified.
Brown said this was because Cameron was jealous of Woodard and Brown’s relationship, testified her cousin, Breanna Young, who lived with Brown last fall and this winter. She moved out because Woodard, with whom she did not get along, came between her and her cousin, she said.
She said Woodard once said Brown should have aborted Cameron.
Warnsley said he would call the boy names like “cry baby.”
“He said he wished he could kill Cameron to keep him from crying,” said Warnsley, who is no longer friends with Woodard. Woodard accused Warnsley of cheating on a girlfriend, which Warnsley said ended their friendship.
Woodard’s lawyer, George Lyons, indicated Woodard was venting when he talked to Warnsley about Cameron.
Woodard, who is about 6 feet 7 inches tall, told authorities and others he was carrying Cameron when they both fell and Cameron hit his head on a door jam.
Cameron’s injuries could have been caused by such an event, Cassin said.
The medical examiner said he could not determine whether the boy died by accident or homicide.
“There was at least one blow, a hard blow to the back of the head,” he said.
Cameron also had a broken collar bone and bruises on his butt and legs, he said.
This could be consistent with Woodard holding him, the doctor said under questioning by Lyons.
At the close of Tuesday’s testimony, Mazur told Lyons to talk to Woodard about his behavior.
Brown’s lawyer, Anthony Raduazo said Woodard, using expletives, threatened Brown while she left the courtroom last week.
Woodard also made an inappropriate gesture or expression at Warnsley, which clearly aggravated Mazur on Tuesday. The judge interrupted proceedings to warn Woodard about such actions, saying he was always watching the defendant.
Woodard, who was on probation at the time of Cameron’s death, is in jail without bond. Brown is out of jail on bond. Testimony last week indicated she was expecting a child.
Tuesday, she wore a sweatshirt printed with a memorial to her son.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2010/02/medical_examiner_testifies_in.html

Jury selection has begun today in the trial of

Ronald Woodard II, who is accused of causing the injuries that killed 2-year-old Cameron Russell in January 2010.The 24-year-old is charged with felony murder and first-degree child abuse.Cameron
died Jan. 20, 2010, at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann
Arbor. His head forcibly hit a fixed surface, causing injuries that
included a fractured skull, a medical examiner testified early last
year.Woodard told authorities and others he was carrying Cameron when they both fell and the boy hit his head on the door jam.The
boy is the son of Woodard’s former girlfriend, Christy Brown, and
Woodard was caring for Cameron in the home they once shared on Backus
Street in Jackson.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2011/05/jury_selection_is_expected_to.html

In emotional testimony that left jury members crying, the mother of
Cameron Russell today recalled seeing her 2-year-old son unresponsive
when she returned home from work the day before he died.“I just kept saying, ‘Somebody help me. He won't wake up,’” Christy Brown said through tears. “It was chaotic.”Brown took the stand in the murder trial of former boyfriend Ronald Woodard II. Cameron died Jan. 20, 2010, at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor. Woodard
was caring for Cameron on Jan. 19, 2010. Woodard said he was holding
the 2-year-old when he tripped over a dog at Brown's home and Cameron
hit his head as a result.Brown was crying so heavily during part
of her testimony that Circuit Court Judge John McBain allowed a
10-minute recess. Members of the jury and audience also were crying.Brown
said Cameron had told her another time that Woodard and the fictional
character Spider-Man hit him. Cameron said Woodard hit him "all the
time," Brown said.When confronted about the alleged abuse, Woodard told Brown that Cameron needed more discipline in his life, she said.Brown said Woodard never directly confirmed nor denied the alleged abuse.A
prosecutor had Brown explain the injuries and marks on Cameron’s body
in pictures taken at the hospital. Brown had given a Cameron a bath the
night before his death and pointed out several bruises and red marks in
the pictures that she had not seen when bathing him.The red marks
and bruises were located on Cameron’s legs, back, buttocks, genitals,
face, shoulder, ear and tongue. Brown also said the whites of Cameron’s
eyes were redder than normal in the hospital photographs.The
prosecutor also played a recording of the 911 call from Brown’s home on
Jan. 19. Woodard made the call and repeated that he and Cameron had
tripped over the dog, causing the boy’s injury.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2011/05/mother_of_2-year-old_i_just_ke.html

A jury will now decide if 2-year-old Cameron Russell died by accident or by murder.Jackson
County Assistant Prosecutor Nimish Ganatra and defense attorney George
Lyons gave closing statements Monday after six days of testimony in the
trial of Ronald Woodard II. The 24-year-old faces first-degree murder and child abuse charges in Cameron’s death.In
an impassioned speech, Lyons, Woodard’s attorney, asked the jury to
consider Cameron’s death an accident. He argued the prosecution’s theory
of a jealous Woodard who took out frustration on Cameron did not come
out during the trial.“I’m asking you; I’m praying that you don’t exasperate one tragedy by pitching another one on top of it,” Lyons said. “They
want you to be upset. They want you to think about that child, not the
facts and the law. They want you to subvert reason for passion.”Assistant Prosecutor Nimish Ganatra told jurors Cameron's death was not an accident. He also urged them to leave their passion at the door. “But not your common sense,” he said. “There’s a difference."Deliberations begin today.Before
closing statements Monday, two forensic pathologists testified the
manner, or circumstances, of Cameron’s death could not be determined. They disagreed on the possibility the death was accidental.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2011/05/post_121.html

A Jackson
County jury is deciding the fate of a man who is accused of killing a
2-year-old. Ronald Woodward II is charged with first degree child abuse
and first degree murder.
Both
the prosecution and defense had testimony from different medical
experts who agreed they can't pin-point the circumstances of 2-year-old
Cameron Russell's death. Although they can confirm the little boy died from head injuries.
Prosecutors are accusing Woodard of causing those injuries, and that he did so in a jealous rage after finding out his then-girlfriend was allegedly cheating on him.
But the defense claims that Cameron's death was simply an accident. They say Woodard tripped and fell while holding Cameron.
There
was a lot of emotional testimony in the 6-day trial. The prosecution
called about 20 witnesses, including Cameron's mother.
The jury deliberated all day Tuesday and that's continuing Wednesday.

http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?S=14668891

Jury forewoman says jury in Ronald Woodard case wasn't convinced Woodard intended to kill 2-year-old Cameron Russell


Published: Wednesday, May 18, 2011


Jurors had no trouble convicting Ronald Woodard II was guilty of first-degree child abuse, but deciding whether he committed murder was much more difficult, the jury forewoman said.
“We could not see the defendant waking up in the morning and saying, ‘I am going to kill this child,’” said Megan Bush, 20, of Brooklyn.
Nine days after the trial began, the jury acquitted Woodard of both first-degree felony murder and second-degree murder. They found him guilty of the least of three options, involuntary manslaughter.
The felony is punishable by a maximum prison term of 15 years, but because Woodard has three prior felony convictions, the maximum possible sentence increases to life in prison, Assistant Prosecutor Nimish Ganatra said.
Jackson County Circuit Judge John McBain is to sentence Woodard on June 30.
Woodard caused the death of 2-year-old Cameron Russell, the son of his former girlfriend.
Alone with the boy, he said he fell while carrying Cameron, tripped on a dog, and Cameron hit his head on a door jamb. Woodard did not testify, but the jury saw an extensive interview with police.
Bush said he was not entirely consistent in his telling of what happened. “Did I believe him?” She said. “No.”
To convict Woodard of the most serious murder charge, she said jurors would have needed to hear another witness to the events, or other evidence, such as damage done to the area of the fall.
“We do agree this was a horrendous accident,” she said. “(Woodard) did not take the right steps in preventing (Cameron’s) death.”
He should have called a doctor. He should have asked more questions, she said.
According to testimony, Woodard called the boy’s mother, Christy Brown, but told her he did not think Cameron was seriously hurt. He did not call 911 until Brown returned home to find her son unresponsive.
Bush said jurors were suspicious others might have been involved in the abuse of Cameron, who had bruises and marks all over his body and a broken collar bone.
The “main trauma,” however, happened while he was in Woodard’s care, she said.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2011/05/jury_forewoman_says_jury_in_ro.html