ALEXANDER FRETT - 2 Months/ Accused: Christopher Harris and Mother-Jennifer Granberg - Visalia CA

Police in Visalia continue to investigate the death of a two month old baby who suffered from severe hot water burns.

In custody are the
infant's mother, Jennifer Grandberg and her boyfriend Christopher
Harris. Both have been charged with murder.
Police say they responded to a
call just before 3:00 Sunday afternoon at the 800 block of N. Divisadero
in Visalia to help the infant. First responders to the scene said the
child was dead when they arrived.
The exact cause of the baby's death has not been determined.

If you have any information that could help investigators, you are urged to call Visalia police at 713-4727, or at 713-4234.
http://www.ksee24.com/home/Visalia-Police-Continue-Investigation-into-Death-of-Two-Month-Old-Baby-147612315.html

The mother of a Visalia man accused of killing a two-month-old baby is speaking out, saying her son is innocent.
Authorities say the infant's name was Alexander Xavier Frett. The
newborn's mother, Jennifer Granberg and her boyfriend Christopher Harris
were arrested at their Visalia home on Sunday.
Visalia Police say the baby had severe burns on his body, which were caused by water.
Christopher Harris is not the father. But, his mother says, he thought
of Alexander or Xavier as they called him as his own son and claims he
would never hurt him.
"I don't know about the baby, I don't know about the details of what happened," said Susan Harris.
"I don't know anything."
Susan Harris hasn't spoken to her son, Christopher, since Sunday, as
she watched Visalia Police take him and his girlfriend, Jennifer
Granberg away from their Visalia home. Susan often spent time here
visiting the couple, and Granberg's two-month-old baby boy, Xavier. The
last time she saw him alive was Friday.
Susan Harris said, "He was happy and good to life and he was just gorgeous."
When paramedics arrived to the house on North Divisadero, Xavier wasn't
breathing. Investigators later discovered Granberg and her boyfriend
had different stories about what may have happened to the new-born.
Sgt. Amy Watkins with the Visalia Police Dept. said, "The statements
given by the two suspects in this case were inconsistent the child's injuries."
Susan says her son has a five-year-old of his own,
and that he had nothing to do with Xavier's death. She says another
couple was at the home when the baby died and questions whether they
know something police don't. "They had to have heard something."
No one answered when Action News stopped by the home Monday night.
Minutes later, a couple emerged from the back door, and sped off.
"We would like some answers tomorrow and to head in the right
direction to protect other children out there and to protect my son."
The couple is expected to be arraigned on murder charges Tuesday.
Autopsy results should be back by then, as well.

http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=8623840

The Visalia woman arrested Sunday in connection with her
2-month-old baby boy's death is scheduled to return to court Monday,
making it her second appearance before a Tulare County Superior Court
judge.
Jennifer Granberg, 25, is facing felony murder charges in connection with the death of Alexander Xavier Frett.
Granberg
and Christopher Harris, also 25, pleaded not guilty at their
arraignment Tuesday. They're in custody because no bail was set for
them.
Deputy District Attorney Brenda Broker said nothing major is expected at the Monday court hearing.
According
to Visalia police, officers were called Sunday to an apartment in the
800 block of North Divisadero Street reportedly because 2-month-old
Alexander was suffering from severe hot water burns. Police said
Alexander was dead when they arrived.
An autopsy on Alexander was
completed Monday, Broker said. However, a report on the results hasn't
been forwarded to the District Attorney's Office and the cause of death
is still undetermined.
Broker said it could take up to two weeks, depending on tests performed as part of the autopsy, for the report to be completed.
Detectives investigating the death determined that Granberg and Harris -
described
as the woman's boyfriend and not related to the baby — were responsible
for the boy's death and were taken into custody.
The two were arraigned Tuesday, entering not guilty pleas.
The
couple were also assigned defense attorneys. The Tulare County Public
Defender's Office was assigned to represent Granberg, while a conflict
attorney will represent Harris.
There's a reason why separate attorneys were assigned to each defendant, Broker said.
"It could be a conflict of interest," she said. "They need to have different attorneys."
A conflict attorney is contracted through the Public Defender's Office and represents defendants the agency can't.
Granberg
and Harris are scheduled to appear together April 27 for a preliminary
hearing conference and a preliminary hearing April 30.
An early court procedure, a preliminary hearing is held to determine if there's enough evidence for a trial.
It'll depend of the defense attorney if the case against Granberg and Harris moves on to the preliminary hearing, Broker said.
"There's a lot of discovery," she said. "It's up to the defense attorney if they will be ready."
Visalia police Sgt. Amy Watkins said her department had no additional information on its investigation.
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