JASON LARKIN - 3 yo - Roxborough (North Philly) PA

UPDATE: Arrest made in toddler's death in Roxborough

Monday, January 17, 2011





Joseph Zysk

Police have arrested a suspect in connection with a
toddler’s death in Roxborough over the weekend. Police have taken Joseph
Zysk, of Roxborough into custody in the death of 3-year-old Jason Larkin, of S. 8th St.

Medics were called out to the 4200 block of
Houghton Street at around 3 a.m. on Jan. 15. The toddler was taken by
ambulance to Roxborough Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead
at around 4 a.m. The incident was ruled a homicide on Jan. 16.

Police said the boy died from multiple blunt impact injuries to the body.
While the incident is still under investigation, police believe the
child was crying and Zysk beat the boy to death. Zysk is charged with
murder, involuntary manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child.

http://www.montgomerynews.com/articles/2011/01/17/roxborough_review/news/doc4d345d5ea21e0486152804.txt

A Roxborough man has been charged with beating his girlfriend's son to death while they were staying with him Saturday night.Joseph Zysk, 27, said he went to check on the boy about 3 a.m. Sunday
and found him not breathing, authorities said. The boy's mother called
911.Three-year-old Jason Larkin was declared dead about an hour later at
Roxborough Hospital, police said. The boy had bruises that indicated he
had been beaten, and detectives say they think Zysk hit the boy because
he was crying.Larkin suffered "multiple blunt impact injuries" to his chest and torso,
police said. The fatal injuries included a lacerated liver, said
Homicide Lt. Philip Riehl.Zysk, of the 4200 block of Houghton Street, was arrested Sunday and
charged with murder, involuntary manslaughter and endangering the
welfare of a child.The boy's father had custody of the boy, and they lived in the 2500
block of South Eighth Street, in South Philadelphia, police said.The boy's mother, who lives in Delaware County, would pick up the boy on Fridays for weekend visitation, authorities said.They were staying with Zysk and Zysk's parents at their home Saturday
night. Zysk also has a young daughter who was in the home.Larkin and Zysk's daughter were sleeping in the same bed, but there was no indication that Zysk's daughter suffered any abuse.The city Department of Human Services had no previous contact with Larkin and his family.A preliminary hearing for Zysk has been scheduled for Feb. 2.
Read more: http://www.philly.com/inquirer/

Poster's note: This poor child. His mother didn't even have custody of Jason and only had him for the weekend but instead of spending her weekend with him so the two of them could have a really nice time, she wanted to spend it with her boyfriend who was more to important to her. What's worse is that at some point she obviously left it up to her boyfriend to attend to her child.

PS. Some confusion as to whether his name is Justin or Jason as both articles have a different name. I'll try to find out the accurate name.
It's Jason, I've edited the original article.

Roxborough man faces first-degree murder in tot's death
February 03, 2011

Shortly after he was arrested on charges of killing his girlfriend's 3-year-old son, Joseph Zysk broke down in tears and admitted to police that he had grown frustrated when the boy wouldn't stop crying, and that he had "thumped" the child several times on the side of his body with his fist.

In a police statement that was read during a hearing in Common Pleas Court on Wednesday, Zysk, 27, told investigators, "I didn't mean to hurt him."

The "thumps" inflicted on Jason Larkin tore a hole in the boy's liver, according to the medical examiner, causing massive internal bleeding that ended the child's life less than two hours later. During the autopsy, examiners found that about one-third of the blood in the child's body had pooled in his stomach and that he appeared to have been struck at least 11 times.
Zysk, arrested Jan. 17, was held without bail Wednesday on a first-degree murder charge.

Jason and his mother had been sleeping over on Jan. 15 at the Roxborough home Zysk shared with his own mother. Zysk initially told police he checked on Jason around 3 a.m. and found he was not breathing. He denied having anything to do with the bruises on the boy's body.

Zysk's attorney, John J. McMahon Jr., argued before Common Pleas Court Judge Patrick F. Dugan that some of the boy's injuries might have been caused by Zysk's mother when she performed CPR. He also said Zysk should face a third-degree charge because Zysk had not intended to hurt the boy.

Assistant District Attorney Beth McCaffery countered that Zysk's intent was formed in a split-second when he hit the boy more than once. After he struck the child, she said, Zysk suspected that Jason was injured but chose not to seek medical attention.

Jason "is the epitome of a defenseless victim," she said.

Jason's father, 25-year-old Jason Larkin Sr., had custody of his son and lived with him in South Philadelphia. On Wednesday, he and about a dozen grieving relatives and friends packed the courtroom, sometimes reacting with gasps and sobs to the graphic descriptions of the child's injuries.

After the hearing, the senior Larkin described his son as a typical, happy child who loved Spider-Man, the movie Cars, and playing with his friends in day care.

"He was my best friend," Larkin said. "He was my everything. He was my world."

When Jason died, Larkin was about to move them to a larger house in the Northeast, where they would have lived with Larkin's girlfriend and her children, and where Jason would have had his own room.

Involuntary manslaughter conviction in tot's death
POSTED: 04/02/14, 8:06 AM EDT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Philadelphia jury has convicted a man of involuntary manslaughter in the death of his girlfriend’s toddler son three years ago but couldn’t reach agreement on a third-degree murder charge.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the panel announced its verdict Tuesday in the trial of 30-year-old Joseph Zysk.

Prosecutor John O’Neill said he was “really disappointed” with the verdict and he planned to retry Zysk on the murder charge, a move the defense said it would oppose.

Prosecutors said Zysk lost his temper and punched 3-year-old Jason Larkin Jr. repeatedly in January 2011 because the toddler was crying. Defense attorney Evan Hughes called the case a terrible tragedy but not murder.

Jurors had deliberated for about 21 hours and said Monday they were deadlocked on the murder charge.

http://www.dailylocal.com/general-news/20140402/involuntary-manslaughter-conviction-in-tots-death