JEREMIAH SWAFFORD - 2 yo (2009) - Shelby NC

The 2-year-old suffered more than any child should.

His 43-pound body was “wrapped in a blanket” when the medical examiner’s office received him in a body bag.

A bruised body, bleeding on the brain and a 6-inch skull fracture reflects the pain he endured.

Six months have passed since Jeremiah Swafford died. On Wednesday, new light was shed on how.

Jeremiah was killed Feb. 14 as a
result of “blunt force head trauma due to physical assault/abuse,”
according to the N.C. Medical Examiners Office autopsy report on the
boy. The report continued there was also evidence of “blunt force
abdominal trauma.”

His mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford,
and stepfather, Dwight Stacy Justice, were charged with murder and
child abuse following his death.

Both were initially held without
bond. Tuesday, a judge set Justice’s bond at $200,000 and set
conditions if he is released. Swafford, whose bond was set two months
ago for the same amount, remains in jail.
Skull fracture
The report indicated the skull fracture began at the back of his
head and extended to almost the center. A “focal” bruise was under his
right eye and an “abrasion of (the) lower lip,” according to the report.
Jeremiah was hospitalized for 22 hours and was declared brain dead, the report read.
“I don’t understand how anyone can beat a child to death,” said Kathy Jean Swafford, Jeremiah’s grandmother. “I’m devastated.”
Danny Thomas, Jeremiah’s biological father, previously told The Star doctors told him he was beaten to death.
“His brain was swollen so (badly) it was down to the back of his neck,” Thomas said.
Jeremiah’s brain weighed a little more than 3 pounds.
A fall?
Emergency officials responded to the home of Swafford and Justice
after a caller said Jeremiah had been sick for a couple of days,
according to Cleveland County Sheriff’s Officials.
The caller stated the boy had a knot on his head and had been throwing up blood, deputies said.
Jeremiah was taken to Cleveland Regional Medical Center after a
“reported fall,” according to the autopsy report. Medical officials
discovered the traumatic injuries and then transferred him to Carolinas
Medical Center where he died the following day.
“The extensive nature of these injuries is inconsistent with a simple fall,” the report read.
A piece still missing
Family members “expected” the findings in the report. But it’s still hard to hear.
“I have piece of my life missing,” Kathy Jean said crying. “I have so many emotions I go through.”
She said she still holds onto memories of her late grandson, especially the time she would take him to the park in Grover.
“We would swing side by side,” she said. “He would tell me, ‘push me higher.’ I can still hear him sometimes.”

Listed injuries in Jeremiah’s autopsy:
- Skull fracture
- Bruising of the forehead
- Focal (underneath right eye) bruising
- Abdominal bruising
- Abrasions of the lower lip
- Bruises and abrasions on the face
- Tear of the upper lip
- Abrasion of the left knee
- Blue / green discoloration of the abdomen
- Bruising to the arms
- A blue / brown bruise to the chest
- Abrasion across the jaw line
- Bruise under the jaw

Jeremiah Swafford’s stepfather stared ahead and didn’t speak as
deputies arrested him for the second time on charges regarding the
2-year-old’s 2009 death.
Dwight Stacy Justice, 43, turned himself in to custody Tuesday, one
day after a grand jury re-indicted him in the death of his 2-year-old
stepson.
He faces charges of first-degree murder and felony child abuse.
Justice is being held at the Cleveland County jail without bond.
His next court date is scheduled for June 29.
Kathy Lynn Swafford, Jeremiah’s mother, remains in jail on a $200,000
bond with the same charges in her son’s death.

More information came to light
Swafford and Justice were charged with murder and child abuse one day
after paramedics responded to Jeremiah’s East Zion Church Road home.
Justice remained in jail for more than a year and was released on
Feb. 16 after prosecutors dropped the charges and listed insufficient
evidence to proceed with prosecution.
But as the investigation continued, more information about Justice
became available, which led to resubmitting the indictment to the grand
jury, prosecutors said.
“As I was preparing for the trial, more information about him
(Justice) became available,” said Cleveland County Assistant District
Attorney Bill Young on Tuesday. “In my opinion it needed to go back
before the grand jury.”

‘I couldn’t believe it’
Betty Mayes, Jeremiah’s great-grandmother, said she threw her arms
in the air and burst into tears when she heard about the indictment
charges.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Mayes said. “I have been a praying and a
praying.”
The two-year-old, who family members say would cling to their legs
and beg not to go home, died as result of “blunt force head trauma” due
to child abuse, according to the boy’s autopsy.
Jeremiah also suffered a six-inch skull fracture.
The autopsy also listed “blunt force abdominal trauma.”
On Monday, Kathy Jean Swafford, Jeremiah’s grandmother, began to cry.
The past few months, she said, have been rough.
“After he got killed I had lost all hope in the system,” she said.
“It made me start feeling like there is hope out here and justice will
be done. I was so happy.”
Justice’s lawyer, Ted Cummings, could not immediately be reached on
Tuesday.

Timeline
On Feb. 13, 2009, paramedics responded to the child’s 867-30 E. Zion
Church Road home after a caller said Jeremiah had been sick for a couple
of days.
The caller said he had a knot on his head and had been throwing up
blood.
Jeremiah died the following day at Carolinas Medical Center in
Charlotte.
Following the child’s death, family members contended previous
complaints over possible child abuse at the East Zion Church Road home
were not properly addressed by Cleveland County Department of Social
Services.
DSS released an eight-page summary regarding Jeremiah’s case after The
Star requested information, citing N.C. Child Fatality Law.
The summary, prepared by DSS, indicated inconsistencies in the
allegations of family and cited medical records that did not support
child abuse allegations.

Parents charged with murder of 2-year-old Jeremiah Swafford reject plea deal
Monday, Dec 6 2010, 5:17 pm
Olivia Neeley


SHELBY — Kathy Lynn Swafford stood behind a table on the defense side of the courtroom with her attorney, Fred Flowers.

Dwight Stacy Justice stood with his attorney, Ted Cummings, several feet away.

On Monday, Swafford, 21, and Justice, 43, rejected the state’s plea offer of second-degree murder charges in the 2009 death of Jeremiah Swafford. That sentence would have carried a minimum of roughly seven and half years to a maximum of 14 years in prison, according to court proceedings.

Superior Court Judge Forrest D. Bridges explained that the sentencing would be in the judge’s discretion but that the defendants would receive an active sentence.

On Feb. 14, 2009, Swafford and Justice were charged with first-degree murder and child abuse in the 2-year-old’s killing. If convicted, both could face life in prison without parole.

Swafford, whose hair was pulled halfway back away from her face, whispered to Flowers. She wanted to know if that plea offer meant seven and half years maximum or minimum.

Justice stared ahead. Both entered a plea of not guilty and a trail date was set for Oct. 31, 2011.

Emergency officials responded to the couple’s East Zion Church Road home on Feb. 13, 2009, after a caller said Jeremiah had been sick for a couple of days, according to Cleveland County sheriff’s officials.

The caller stated the boy had a knot on his head and had been throwing up blood, deputies said. Jeremiah was taken to Cleveland Regional Medical Center after a “reported fall,” according to the autopsy report. The 2-year-old died the following day at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.

The 2-year-old, who family members say would cling to their legs and beg not to go home, died as result of “blunt-orce head trauma” due to child abuse, according to the boy’s autopsy.

Jeremiah also suffered a six-inch skull fracture. The autopsy also listed “blunt-force abdominal trauma.”

Reach reporter Olivia Neeley at 704-669-3332.

http://www.shelbystar.com/news/murder-52016-swafford-old.html

SHELBY — The man accused of killing his stepson is out of jail on bond.


Dwight Stacy Justice was released from Cleveland County Detention
Center on a $150,000 property bond on Friday, about two months before he
is set to stand trial for the killing of 2-year-old Jeremiah Swafford.


Justice and Jeremiah’s mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford, will be tried
together for the child’s death, said Assistant District Attorney Bill
Young. Jury selection in the trial is set to start Oct. 31, Young said.

Swafford remains in jail under a $150,000 secured bond.

Cleveland County Sheriff Alan Norman confirmed Monday that Justice
left police custody on Friday after making bond. Swafford remains in
Cleveland County jail. Both Justice and Swafford are charged with
first-degree murder and child abuse in Jeremiah’s death.


Jeremiah died in February 2009 at Carolinas Medical Center after
sustaining “blunt force head trauma,” according to the child’s autopsy.
Jeremiah also had a 6-inch skull fracture and blunt force abdominal
trauma, the autopsy said.

About a year after Jeremiah’s death, charges against Justice were
dropped, with court documents citing insufficient evidence. Justice was
re-indicted in June 2010 on first-degree murder and child abuse charges
relating to Jeremiah’s death.

Young said Swafford appeared in court Monday with defense attorney
Fred Flowers. The defense asked the state to identify the murder weapon
used in Jeremiah’s death, but the state said it didn’t have any
witnesses who could identify any murder weapon, according to Young. He
said the judge asked Flowers to return any expert witness reports to the
state by Sept. 24.

Read more: http://www.gastongazette.com/articles/killer-60387-shelby-accused.html#ixzz1WXIX2NFy

SHELBY —The man and woman previously set to stand trial together for
the murder of a 2-year-old boy will be tried separately, a judge decided
Tuesday.

Dwight Stacy Justice and Kathy Lynn Swafford are charged with
first-degree murder and felony child abuse in the 2009 death of Jeremiah
Swafford, Kathy Lynn Swafford’s son. The pair was scheduled to stand
trial starting Oct. 31, but Superior Court Judge Richard Boner ruled
Tuesday in a Charlotte courtroom that the trials would be separated and
continued to later dates.

“After the presentation and the motion, (Boner) found that it was
certainly in the interest of justice that the cases should be severed,”
said Ted Cummings, Jus-tice’s attorney.

The hearing was held in Charlotte because Boner, who would have
presided over the case had it been heard Oct. 31, was holding court
Tuesday in Mecklenburg County.

Cummings said Justice will stand trial starting Jan. 16. Kathy Lynn
Swafford’s trial is scheduled to start Feb. 13, one day before the
three-year anniversary of Jeremiah’s death.

The toddler died of “blunt-force head trauma” due to child abuse, according to the boy’s autopsy.

‘Denial of his due process’

Cummings filed a motion with the Cleveland County Clerk of Court on
Oct. 21 to prevent Justice and Kathy Lynn Swafford from being tried
together in Jeremiah’s death. The motion also requests a continuance of
Justice’s trial.

Witnesses who were incarcerated with Kathy Lynn Swafford in the
Cleveland County jail gave statements that incriminated her in her son’s
death and exonerated Justice, creating “antagonistic defenses” between
the two defendants, according to the motion.

In Cummings’ motion, he writes, “… these antagonistic defenses are so
at odds that for the co-defendants to be tried together would posture
(Justice) in league with the state in prosecuting co-defendant
Swafford.”

Cummings also said in the motion that he plans to call Kathy Lynn
Swafford as a witness in the trial for a “crucial” part of Justice’s
defense.

“Without this co-defendant’s testimony, the defendant will be
deprived of evidence which would help establish his innocence, which
would result in a denial of his due process,” the motion says.

Continuances

Cummings said Boner heard his motion requesting the trials be
severed, as well as statements from Kathy Lynn Swafford’s attorney, Fred
Flowers, and prosecutor Bill Young, Cleveland County assistant district
attorney.

Kathy Lynn Swafford was taken from the Cleveland County jail, where
she has been incarcerated since her son’s death, to be present for the
hearing in the Charlotte courtroom. Cummings said Justice wasn’t in
attendance, but Cummings called Justice and notified him of the trial
continuance.

Justice was released from jail in August on a $150,000 property bond. Kathy Lynn Swafford remains in jail under a $150,000 bond.

Young confirmed that both Justice and Kathy Lynn Swafford had their
cases continued Tuesday to later dates. He said it’s still possible
that, in their separate trials, Justice and Kathy Lynn Swafford could
both be convicted of first-degree murder and felony child abuse in
Jeremiah’s death.

Both trials are set to be heard in Cleveland County, Young said.

When reached by phone Monday before the hearing, Flowers wouldn’t give any details about the case.

“I'm not going to discuss (Kathy Lynn Swafford) or her trial," Flowers said.

He wasn’t immediately available for comment Tuesday afternoon.

Bobby Swafford, Kathy Lynn Swafford’s father and Jeremiah’s
grandfather, also declined to comment about the case Monday. Bobby
Swafford couldn’t be reached by phone Tuesday.
http://www.shelbystar.com/articles/shelby-59517-swafford-case.html

Yes, you read that right... the Judge's name is Dick Boner.
Who does that to a child????

TomTerrific0420 wrote:Yes, you read that right... the Judge's name is Dick Boner.
Who does that to a child????

Stupid people.

Adolf Hitler & sister Aryan Nation remain in foster care after 33 months; parents fight for return

BY MICHAEL SHERIDAN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, October 26th 2011, 11:09 AM



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/10/26/2011-10-26_adolf_hitler__sister_aryan_nation_remain_in_foster_care_after_33_months_parents_.html#ixzz1c01yKouN

Jury chosen in toddler murder trial

Wednesday, Jan 18 2012, 8:17 am

SHELBY — She sat in the back of the courtroom with a white T-shirt folded neatly over her lap.

“Gone but not forgotten,” the shirt reads. Pictured above the lettering is a smiling little boy with blond hair and a few exposed teeth.

It’s been nearly three years since Donna Willis lost her 2-year-old nephew, Jeremiah Swafford. She said she plans to be in court as often as she can during the trial for one of the people charged in Jeremiah’s murder.

“I want to be here for him,” Willis said. “I wanted everybody to remember him.”

Tuesday marked the first day in the trial of Dwight Stacy Justice, the man charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse in connection with death of his stepson. Kathy Lynn Swafford, Jeremiah’s mother, faces the same charges.

Jeremiah died nearly three years ago, just months before his third birthday. Jeremiah’s autopsy revealed the boy died from “blunt-force head trauma due to physical assault/abuse,” according to the N.C. Medical Examiner’s Office.

Assistant District Attorney Bill Young, prosecutor for the case, said Tuesday the state isn’t seeking the death penalty against Justice. Kathy Lynn Swafford is scheduled to stand trial in the coming months.

Justice sat with his attorney, Ted Cummings, in the courtroom Tuesday as jury selection started. Potential jurors of all ages and races filled court benches. A bright orange “Jury” sticker clung to their shirts.

Young and Cummings asked jurors questions about where they worked, whether they were married and how many children they had. The potential jurors also answered questions about whether they could reach a fair decision about how Jeremiah died.

By 5 p.m. Tuesday, the prosecution and defense had agreed on a jury of nine women and three men. Two alternate jurors, one man and one woman, were also selected.

The court bailiff handed each juror a red badge printed with the word “Juror.” He advised the men and women to wear those badges in court every day for the duration of the trial. Judge Robert Ervin said the trial is expected to last through next week.

Court is scheduled to resume Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. with opening statements followed by evidence presentation. A list of potential witnesses during the trial includes doctors, analysts from the State Bureau of Investigation and law enforcement officers, as well as Kathy Lynn Swafford and Justice.

http://www.shelbystar.com/articles/shelby-61364-toddler-trial.html

Reporter Jordan-Ashley Baker is in court this week covering the murder trial of Dwight Stacy Justice, charged in the 2009 death of 2-year-old Jeremiah Swafford. Follow her on Twitter at @JAB_ShelbyStar or come back to this page throughout the week for updates as they develop.

http://web.shelbystar.com/swafford/

SHELBY Graphic autopsy images of 2-year-old Jeremiah Swafford
flashed in a courtroom on Wednesday as testimony began in the trial a
Cleveland County man charged with the beating death of his stepson in
2009.

Diagrams and photos were used to illustrate experts' descriptions of injuries on the toddler's body.

Dwight Stacy Justice was charged with first-degree murder and
felony child abuse in the high-profile case. The boy's death on Feb. 14,
2009, sparked anger across the region, with many criticizing both the
family and authorities.

The boy's relatives said social services officials had ample opportunity to remove the boy from a dangerous situation.

Jeremiah's mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford, also faces first-degree
murder and felony child abuse charges and will be tried in March. She
may be called to testify in her husband's trial, Justice's lawyer said.

In opening statements Wednesday, Assistant Cleveland County
District Attorney Bill Young said Swafford and Justice had been married
two or three days before the toddler's death but had been living
together for several months in a Shelby apartment.

Living with them and Jeremiah was Justice's 8-year-old son. On
the night of Feb. 12, 2009, Young said the mother and stepfather found
Jeremiah OK in bed. The next morning, Justice took his son to school,
came home and fell asleep watching TV.

"By lunchtime, he (Jeremiah) had suffered severe head injuries
and injuries on other parts of his body," Young told the jury. "The
defendant and Swafford waited a time period before calling 911."

Dr. Thomas Owens, a forensic pathologist with the Mecklenburg
Medical Examiner's Office, performed the autopsy and testified that
Jeremiah died from blunt force head trauma resulting in brain swelling.

The boy had a 6-inch fracture on his head and smaller fracture running parallel to it, Owens said

He testified Jeremiah could have been hit with an object or
"dropped or banged into an object. Either way, it would have required a
"significant amount of force."

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/19/2938193/stepdad-on-trial-in-death-of-toddler.html



Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/19/2938193/stepdad-on-trial-in-death-of-toddler.html#storylink=cpy

Justice to police: She killed the boy



Friday, Jan 20 2012, 7:34 pm

SHELBY — The video showed Dwight Stacy Justice sitting in an interview room at the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office.

He leaned forward in his chair and looked down. Cuffs bound his hands.

It was Feb. 14, 2009. Officers had served Justice a warrant in connection with the brutal beating of his stepson, Jeremiah Swafford.

The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation agent had warned Dwight Stacy Justice that things looked bad for him: A 2-year-old with severe head trauma and massive internal bleeding.

A six-inch crack spread from the right side of the child’s skull and continued to the base of his spine. That type of skull fracture is more like what you would see in a fall from a second-story building or a high-speed car crash, Dr. Thomas Owen, the medical examiner who performed Jeremiah’s autopsy, told the court earlier this week.

Scrapes and bruises dotted the boy’s mouth, chin, neck and forehead. His swollen head was soft with pooling blood.

Two adults were with Jeremiah the morning he was injured — Justice and Jeremiah's mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford, according to court testimony. One of them beat Jeremiah to death and the other had to know about it, the SBI agent told Justice during the interview.

Justice admitted to "popping" the boy, but repeatedly denied during multiple interviews with police that he had anything to do with the boy's death. He also denied seeing his wife deliver a fatal blow to Jeremiah.

"If you didn't do this ... you've got one chance to tell me what happened," said SBI agent John Kaiser, the resident criminal agent for Cleveland County, during the interview with Justice.

"She did it," Justice responded to Kaiser.

"How do you know?" the SBI agent demanded.

"I don't know," Justice said.

Kaiser told Justice he doubted his story. If Justice didn't hurt Jeremiah, then he would have heard Jeremiah crying if Swafford beat him, the SBI agent reasoned.

Both Justice and Swafford are charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse in Jeremiah's death. Justice's murder trial started Tuesday, and Swafford's is scheduled to start in the coming months.

On Friday, jurors listened to hours of video and audio recordings from February 2009 police interviews with Justice. Each juror received a thick packet of pages filled with a transcript of the interviews.

Justice, wearing a pair of glasses, also looked over a transcript with his attorney, Ted Cummings.

During the interviews, Kaiser prompted Justice to tell him how Jeremiah was injured. Justice said he saw Swafford hit her son with a belt or with her hands when the boy misbehaved. Justice also told police that his wife spoke rudely to her son, and Justice had asked her to stop.

Justice also said he “popped” the boy when Jeremiah would use foul language or throw food at him. But he never abused the boy, he told police.

"I love him to death," Justice said in the interview. "He would come up to kiss me and hug me and ask me for something to eat. We had some good times."

Justice described to investigators how, hours before emergency responders arrived at his apartment to care for Jeremiah, he woke up to take his son to school. He said he checked on Jeremiah twice that morning and found him lying on the bed with his eyes open, seemingly uninjured. Justice then told police he dozed off in his easy chair. He awoke about noon to hear his wife screaming.

"'He's dead, he's dead,'" Justice said he heard Swafford screaming. "'My baby's dead.'"

The prosecution resumes its case against Justice at 9:30 a.m. Monday.

http://www.shelbystar.com/news/justice-61454-photo-case.html

SHELBY - A Cleveland County jury on Friday got a closer look at events surrounding the death of 2-year-old Jeremiah Swafford through transcripts and a video of interviews with the victim's stepfather.

In the sessions conducted by investigators in Shelby and Charlotte, Dwight Stacy Justice repeatedly denied he had anything to do with his stepson's death. He's charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse in the 2009 beating death of the toddler. Jeremiah's mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford, faces the same charges and will be tried in March.

A medical examiner testified that Jeremiah died Feb. 14 from blunt force head trauma resulting in brain swelling. The toddler had a 6-inch fracture on his head.

"I loved that little boy," Justice told an SBI interviewer Feb. 13, 2009, the day Jeremiah was found at home in Shelby with severe head injuries. "You can put me on the lie detector. But I know I didn't do it. I'm telling the truth."

Early in the interview at Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, John Kiser with the State Bureau of Investigation told Justice the boy's traumatic injuries didn't match the explanation that he'd fallen out of a 2-foot high bed.

"You or Kathy did it," Kiser said. "If it's you, you need to get in front of this thing...you want to do the right thing. If it's Kathy, you don't need to go down with her... this is an opportunity... I can be your advocate."

But Justice replied: "I didn't see her do anything to him."

Cleveland County Assistant District Attorney Bill Young provided jurors with transcripts of the interview along with another Kiser conducted with Justice at the Cleveland County Jail on Feb. 14, after he'd been arrested.

The jury also had the transcript of an interview conducted by Detective Sgt. Mark Craig with the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office on the afternoon of Feb. 13 at Cleveland Regional Medical Center in Shelby.

During that interview, Kathy Swafford entered the room and announced she couldn't fly in the helicopter with Jeremiah to Carolinas Medical Center because "my nerves is all tore up."

Justice asked if he should go along and she replied yes, "you're the stepfather."

In all three interviews, Justice outlined events on the morning of Feb. 13 at his apartment. He said he woke at 7:15 a.m., got his 8-year-old son, Curtis, ready for school and checked on Jeremiah before leaving.

Justice said the toddler was "laying there in bed, wide awake." He said he saw nothing wrong and left for school, with his wife in bed asleep.

When he returned around 8:10 a.m., Jeremiah was still in bed with his "eyes awake," said Justice, who sat down in the living room to watch TV.

In and out of sleep, he heard snatches of TV programs and his wife running the water in the bathroom. Shortly after noon, he heard her yelling: "He's hurt, he's hurt."

Justice told the interviewers his wife said she'd seen Jeremiah around 11:45 a.m., kissed him, and gone to the bathroom to shower. When she came out he was on the bedroom floor, limp and unresponsive.

"I was trying to dial 911 and keep her calm," Justice said. "I felt Jeremiah to see if he was breathing. He was, but not exactly right."

Justice said he "noticed a knot" on the boy's forehead. He didn't know what happened, speculating the boy fell out of bed and hit his head on the corner of a chest of drawers.

In the Feb. 13 interview with Kiser, Justice talked about the medications he and Swafford took for their mood swings. He'd seen Swafford hit Jeremiah occasionally with a belt and "talk mean" to him. But Justice said, "I didn't see her hit him on the back of the head."

When Justice asked if Swafford had "snapped" on the day Jeremiah was injured, Justice replied, "I don't know. I want to love her. I want to keep her. She's all I got."

In the Feb. 14 jail interview, which the jury saw on video, at one point Kiser slammed his hand on a desk and yelled at Justice that doctors felt Jeremiah's injuries were more consistent with an adult male smashing him into a wall.

"You beat him to death," Kiser said.

"No, I didn't," Justice responded.

The prosecution will continue presenting evidence at 9:30 a.m. Monday.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/21/2944739/jeremiahs-stepfather-i-loved-that.html#storylink=cpy

Poster's note: I was trying to find autopsy results that might list the approximate time of his injuries. What toddler just lays in bed when he is awake? I'm thinking he must have been injured the night before if Justice's account is true, seeing Jeremiah at 7:15 AM laying in bed with his eyes open. But the other horror of this story is that family members tried to get help and that the baby was even taken to the hospital prior to this and nothing was done:

"Kathy Lynn Swafford’s mother and aunt told NewsChannel 36 that they have been trying to get help for Jeremiah since they first suspected abuse in the home.

“He was hit so hard the bruises of the hand was still on his face,” said Cindy Cochran, Jeremiah’s great-aunt. “They popped out the tube in his ear.”

Cochran said Jeremiah’s grandmother took the little boy to the hospital in December when she noticed suspicious bruising. She said he was handed back to his parents, and that’s the last time she saw him. Cochran was so disturbed by what she suspected was going on in the home that she tried to get Cleveland County social service agencies involved, but with no success.

“I told them if he was not removed from the house, he would be dead in 1 to 3 months,” said Cochran. “All of this fell on deaf ears.”

Now Cochran’s family says they feel frustrated and helpless as they plan a funeral they can’t afford, and tried to prevent, for Jeremiah.

“He was just with a black eye four days ago,” said Cochran, “and now he was beat to death.”

http://sites.google.com/site/2yearoldjeremiahswafford/Home/more-of-his-life

DSS Report Regarding Jeremiah Swafford

Posted: 4:03 pm EST February 20, 2009
This written summary has been prepared and provided by the Cleveland County Department of Social Services at the request of several local media news agencies, and is rendered in accordance with N.C.G.S. 7B-2902 as a result of the death of Jeremiah Swafford as a result of suspected abuse, and the criminal charges against Kathy Lynn Swafford Justice and Dwight Stacy Justice. The District Attorney for the 27-B Judicial District has been consulted prior to the release of this written summary and he has confirmed that this release is in compliance with the restrictions of N.C.G.S. 7B-2902(b) and 2902(d).

Read entire report here:
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/18761560/detail.html

Jurors tour Justice home

Brittany Randolph/The Star Dwight Stacy Justice and attorney Ted Cummings exit the apartment on East Zion Church Road where he lived with Kathy Swafford in 2009. Members of the jury were allowed to walk through the home as part of the trial on Monday.
Monday, Jan 23 2012, 6:20 pm



Jordan-Ashley Baker



SHELBY — On Monday, Dwight Stacy Justice stepped into the apartment he once shared with his family.

Someone else lives there now.

Justice carried a large black umbrella as he walked down a driveway to the one-story brick home. The building on East Zion Church Road is divided into four apartments — one of which is where prosecutors say Justice's 2-year-old stepson was beaten so severely he died.

Justice is charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse in Jeremiah Swafford's death. Kathy Lynn Swafford, the boy's mother and Justice's wife, faces the same charges as Justice. Her trial is coming in February or March.

For a week now, jurors have listened to expert testimony detailing Jeremiah's grisly injuries. He had a six-inch fracture in his skull. His tiny body was covered in bruises and scrapes. A severe blow to the head caused his brain to swell so much that it eventually killed him.



The home where Jeremiah died

Prosecutor Bill Young told Judge Robert Ervin on Friday that he wanted jurors to see for themselves where those injuries happened.

Jurors traveled to the East Zion Church Road apartment Monday afternoon in two white vans. Justice and his attorney, Ted Cummings, as well as Ervin and Young joined the jurors for the trip.

Deputies ushered jurors into the apartment in groups of four or five at a time. They stepped around muddy rain puddles pooling in the grass and concrete. Several of the men and women wore rain jackets and pulled hoods over their heads to stay dry.

The jurors spent a few minutes inside the apartment before leaving from the same door in which they entered. The trip lasted about 30 minutes.

Jurors spent the remainder of Monday viewing items police took into evidence at Justice's apartment shortly after Jeremiah was fatally injured in February 2009. On Monday, a deputy from the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office pulled the sealed items from a long cardboard box with the word "Swafford" written in black ink.

Deputy Maurice Jamerson carefully removed three white pillows from individually sealed bags printed with the word "Biohazard." Two of the pillows had red, white and blue Spider-Man pillowcases. Police recovered those things from Jeremiah's room, Jamerson testified.

Other items entered into evidence Monday morning included matching Spider-Man sheets, a pink bath towel and plastic containers filled with samples of Jeremiah's blood taken by a hospital nurse.



Boy’s blood found on pillows, sheets

Two bed sheets, three pillows and two pillowcases taken from Jeremiah's room gave a chemical indication for the presence of Jeremiah’s blood or DNA, according to testimony from a former SBI DNA analyst who worked on the Swafford case. The pink towel taken from inside Jeremiah's house also contained chemical indications for Jeremiah’s blood or DNA, said the analyst, Christiana Hobgood.

The dark colors of the bedclothes and pillow cases made dark stains difficult to see. Rust-colored stains covered about half of the light pink towel. Hobgood, with the help of a sheriff’s deputy, pointed out those stains to the jury.

Hobgood said she used known samples of Jeremiah’s blood, as well as DNA samples from Justice and Swafford, to determine whose blood was on the evidence. Jeremiah’s blood was the only blood found on the items, except for one sample.

The state rested its case against Justice on Monday. The defense is scheduled to start its evidence presentation today.


http://www.shelbystar.com/news/tour-61514-home-jurors.html

After hearing more than five days of testimony, a Cleveland County jury will now decide the fate of Dwight Stacy Justice, who is charged with the beating death of his 2-year-old stepson Jeremiah Swafford in 2009.
The defense rested its case around 11 a.m. Wednesday and closing arguments began at 2 p.m. Deliberations began shortly after 4 p.m.

If found guilty of first-degree murder, Justice faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. He's also charged with felony child abuse.

His wife, Kathy Lynn Swafford, faces similar charges and will be tried in March.

In his closing argument, defense attorney Ted Cummings told the jury that Justice didn't take the witness stand because he'd already said everything he knew about the case in three interviews conducted by law enforcement officers.

"He can't tell you any more," said Cummings. "He's said, 'I didn't do it and I didn't see her (Swafford) do it.' "

A medical examiner has testified Jeremiah died on Feb. 14, 2009, of blunt force trauma to the head resulting in swelling of the brain.

Cummings replayed the 911 tape for the jury on Wednesday, asking them to listen closely to the first few seconds, when, he said, Kathy Swafford could be heard in the background

In the tape, Justice told the dispatcher the toddler was sick and maybe had fallen out of bed. As he talks, a woman moans, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

During the playing of the tape, Justice rested his head in his hand, staring at the table.

Cummings said the evidence showed that Justice was out of the apartment for a period of time on the evening of Feb. 12 and was gone about 45 minutes the following morning to take his 8-year-old son to school.

In his remarks, Cummings reviewed Tuesday's testimony from Jeanette Bonner, who said that while she was an inmate at the Cleveland County Detention Center, Swafford told her that she had picked Jeremiah up by his feet and slammed his head into the wooden part of a couch.

"Was it an accident?" he asked. "Did she mean to kill him? We don't know. That's a question that will be answered when her trial comes up."

Cleveland County Assistant District Attorney Bill Young told the jury Justice has "never got his story straight."

Young played audio clips to illustrate Justice's inconsistencies in interviews with law enforcement officers.

Young reminded the jury Justice had said he was awakened by his wife around noon on Feb. 13 and found Jeremiah unresponsive in bed. But the 911 call wasn't made until 1:17 p.m.

"What was going on?" Young asked. "The cleanup. The coverup."

Justice's claim that he didn't see blood in Jeremiah's bed was "ridiculous," Young told the jury. "Are we a bunch of idiots? I'm asking you to use your common sense."

Under the law, Young said, Justice is guilty of aiding and abetting even if he didn't physically harm Jeremiah.

Jeremiah, who had a birthday coming up on March 7, 2009, "did not make it to three because the defendant beat him to death or failed in his duty to look after that little boy."

Acts of omission "make him just as guilty," Young said.

Jury deliberations will resume at 9:30 a.m. today.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/26/2959205/shelby-jury-to-decide-fate-of.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/26/2959205/shelby-jury-to-decide-fate-of.html

Deadlocked: Jury gets more time to decide verdict

Thursday, Jan 26 2012, 6:36 pm

SHELBY — Someone knocked on the door of the jury room seven times throughout Thursday.

Each time, the idle chatter in the courtroom stopped. Spectators looked up from what they were doing. Each time, the bailiff received a hand-written note on lined yellow paper.

None of those notes detailed a verdict in the Dwight Stacy Justice murder trial. After deliberating more than seven hours in two days, the jury hasn't decided whether Justice is guilty in the death of his 2-year-old stepson.

Jurors came out of the jury room into the courtroom nearly a dozen times Thursday, requesting breaks, copies of court transcripts and legal clarification from the judge. They walked about 10 feet from the deliberation room to sit in the jury box’s black swivel chairs and hear clarified instructions from Judge Robert Ervin.

Jeremiah Swafford, Justice’s stepson, died nearly three years ago from blunt-force trauma to the head causing brain swelling. For more than a week, jurors listened to painful testimony from the state claiming Justice abused Jeremiah. Justice’s defense attorney said Kathy Lynn Swafford, Justice’s wife and Jeremiah’s mother, beat Jeremiah to death.

Jury deadlocked 8-4

The verdict hasn’t been an easy one for jurors.

At 2:30 p.m., jurors handed the bailiff a note saying they couldn’t reach a unanimous decision. The jury forewoman told Ervin that the men and women were divided 8-4 in their decision. Jurors must choose whether Justice is guilty of first- or second-degree murder and/or felony child abuse.

Prosecutor Bill Young cited the felony murder rule, which says a defendant can be guilty of first-degree murder if, as a parent or step-parent, he didn't do all he could to protect the child from harm. Justice waited more than an hour to call 911 after he found Jeremiah unresponsive, and that shows Justice is guilty, Young argued.

It appeared much of the jurors’ confusion centered on applying complex legal jargon to Justice’s charges. Young told the jurors Wednesday that they can find Justice guilty of first-degree murder even if he didn’t deliver the fatal blow to Jeremiah.

“Madame Foreperson, you look quite perplexed,” Ervin told the woman charged with speaking for the nine women and three men Thursday.

Jurors appeared increasingly frustrated and tired as Thursday wore on. They crossed their arms and leaned back in their chairs when returning to the jury box. Some jurors glanced knowingly at each other as the judge asked for clarification on their questions.

Even the judge appeared frustrated at one time, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes.

Justice sat with his attorney, Ted Cummings, his hands clasped in front of him. Sometimes he walked out to the restroom area or sat with supporters on the courtroom benches. He showed little visible emotion each time jurors filed back into the courtroom.

A collection of spectators filtered in and out of the courtroom Thursday as they, too waited for a verdict. Some were from the media; others were from the Justice and Swafford families. Others were simply curious observers.

Justice’s family has filled the left front row of the courtroom every day of his trial.

Donna Willis, Jeremiah's aunt, waited quietly for a verdict in the back of the courtroom Thursday afternoon.

“It’s crazy,” Willis said of the wait. “I don’t see why they have so many questions.”

She described her nephew as a good, sweet child. She said she hoped the jury returned a guilty verdict for Jeremiah’s sake.

Ervin told the court Thursday that he has a prior commitment in Raleigh and won’t be in Cleveland County on Friday. The jury decided not to continue deliberating after 5 p.m. Thursday.

Their deliberation will continue Monday at 9:30 a.m.

http://www.shelbystar.com/articles/jury-61582-click-verdict.html

SHELBY — Dwight Stacy Justice winced as sheriff’s deputies bound his hands behind his back with cuffs.

Deputies led Justice out of the courtroom.

After
deliberating nearly 12 hours over three days, a jury of nine women and
three men didn’t find Justice guilty of murder in the death of his
2-year-old stepson, Jeremiah Swafford. Instead, jurors convicted Justice
of the lesser charge of felony child abuse inflicting serious bodily
injury.

The jury’s decision means Justice won’t serve life in
prison without parole. He faces six to 15 years in prison, pending
sentencing from a judge.

Jurors deliberated for four hours to
reach Monday’s unanimous decision. A division among jurors-- which
started out as 8-4 -- hadn’t changed since deliberation started, the
forewoman told Superior Court Judge Robert Ervin on Thursday.

But something changed in the jury room Monday.

One
juror, who spoke to The Star on condition of anonymity, said jurors had
to compromise to reach a unanimous decision. Three jurors wanted to
acquit Justice, while others wanted to convict him of first- or
second-degree murder.

“I wasn’t going to vote not guilty for sure
— so we made concessions and finally came to that decision,” said the
juror. “Compromised verdict? Yes it was.”

‘Could have, should have’

Jeremiah
Swafford died in February 2009 after blunt-force trauma to the head
caused his brain to swell and cut off his blood supply. Defense attorney
Ted Cummings argued throughout the trial that Kathy Lynn Swafford,
Jeremiah’s mother and Justice’s wife, murdered the toddler.

“He’s upset, clearly, because he says he’s never assaulted the child,” Cummings said after learning of the verdict.

Someone
knocked on the jury room door Monday shortly after noon. The bailiff
answered the door and returned to the courtroom with a yellow sheet of
lined paper. He handed the folded piece of paper to the judge, who
announced that the 12 men and women had come to a unanimous verdict.

Some
time after the verdict was delivered, jurors left the courthouse from a
back exit to avoid reporters, except for the forewoman who answered a
few questions before leaving.

But The Star later talked to the juror who believed the defendant should have been found guilty of murder.

“I
felt like the child was abused before the murder,” the juror told The
Star. “I contended all along that Stacy could have, should have and
didn’t notify somebody that he needed help.”

The juror told The
Star that he or she thought some of the fellow jurors were disgruntled
with the state and factored those frustrations into their decision to
try to acquit Justice.

Reaction

Justice and
Cummings stood before the jury as the clerk of court read the jury’s
verdict. Justice stared straight ahead with his hands crossed in front
of him. He showed little emotion.

The emotion was palpable on the
left side of the courtroom, where Justice’s family sat every day of the
trial. After hearing the verdict, Justice’s family members wiped tears
from their eyes with tissues. One woman shook with grief.

The verdict marked the end of two weeks of testimony and deliberation in the murder trial.

Doctors,
paramedics and pathologists gave heart-wrenching testimony about the
2-year-old’s extensive injuries. They said he had a six-inch skull
fracture than snaked from the right side of his skull into the base of
his spine. His chest and abdomen were bruised purple. One doctor
compared a cut on Jeremiah’s neck to the sharp edge of a belt.

Justice himself said during police interviews that he loved Jeremiah and wouldn’t hurt him.

‘We did our job’

Ann Roberts, jury forewoman, said the trial was very difficult for the 12 jurors.

“We just did the best we could,” Roberts said from the courthouse parking lot after jurors had been dismissed.

"The
fact that everybody’s different and they had different feelings on
things” made coming to a unanimous decision difficult, she said. "We did
our job."

Roberts walked away from the courthouse’s parking
deck. She paused, shaking her head. She said the Justice case was her
first trial as a juror.

Bobby Swafford, Jeremiah’s grandson and Kathy Swafford’s father, isn’t satisfied with the jury’s decision.

“I just don’t think it’s fair myself,” he said when reached by phone Monday evening.

Bobby Swafford wasn’t in the courtroom Monday to hear the verdict, but another family member gave him the news.

“It was shocking as hell,” he said.

Bobby Swafford said he plans to attend his daughter’s trial, which is scheduled to begin in March.

http://www.shelbystar.com/news/trial-61666-verdict-jury.html

What a travesty for Jeremiah. At least they found him guilty of something unlike the Casey Anthony case. But he should have been found guilty of first degree murder. I hope the monster mother is found guilty in March.

SHELBY — Last week, Kathy Lynn Swafford was called to court as a witness to testify during her husband’s trial in Cleveland County.



Both Swafford and her husband, Dwight Stacy Justice, had been charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse in connection with the 2009 death of Jeremiah Swafford.

On March 12, a Lincoln County jury will decide Swafford’s guilt or innocence.

June Albright, trial court coordinator for Judicial District 27B, said Wednesday that a judge had approved a change of venue request and the court proceedings would be moved to Lincoln County.

Fred Flowers, Swafford’s attorney, had filed the motion in December, citing pre-trial publicity and “great prejudice against the defendant” as the reason for the request.

During Justice’s two-week trial The Star, as well as several member of the media from Charlotte, filled benches in the courtroom.

It took the 12 Cleveland County jurors more than two days of deliberations to reach a unanimous verdict in Justice’s trial.

The jurors did not find Justice guilty of first- or second-degree murder. Instead, the men and women convicted him Monday of the lesser of the charges, felony child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury.

He faces six to 15 years in prison, pending sentencing from a judge.

Swafford, 23, has been in jail since Jeremiah’s February 2009 death.

Jeremiah died at Carolinas Medical Center as a result of “blunt-force head trauma due to physical assault/abuse,” according to the N.C. Medical Examiner’s Office autopsy report.

Bill Young, assistant district attorney, was the prosecutor in Justice’s trial and will also be the prosecutor in Swafford’s.

Neither Young nor Flowers could be reached Wednesday.

http://www.shelbystar.com/articles/county-61717-swafford-judge.html

CLEVELAND COUNTY, N.C. —

The man convicted last week of abusing a 2-year-old in Cleveland County has died, officials confirmed Tuesday morning.

Officials in Cleveland County did not say how Dwight Justice died.

Justice died little more than a week after he was convicted of abusing Jeremiah Swafford. The jury could not decide on a sentence, so the judge in the case said that would be determined at a later date.

He was facing up to nine years in prison.

SLIDESHOW: Scenes from Dwight Justice's verdict

Prosecutors were seeking a murder conviction for Justice, but the jury could not reach an agreement after hours of deliberations.

Kathy Swafford, the boy's mother, is also facing murder charges in the death of her son.

Her trial will start later this year.

http://www.wsoctv.com/news/news/local/man-convicted-abuse-child-death-dies-prison/nHWwh/

SHELBY -- Dwight Justice died in his jail cell of a brain aneurysm, the Cleveland County coroner has told the Shelby Star.
The Medical Examiner's Office in Charlotte conducted an autopsy Wednesday on Justice, 45, who had been found guilty last week of child abuse and was in the Cleveland County jail, awaiting sentencing.

Justice originally had been charged with murder, in the death of his 2-year-old stepson Jeremiah Swofford. Justice was found not guilty of murder but was convicted on the child abuse charge. The child's mother, Kathy Swofford, is awaiting trial on murder charges in the child's death.

Jail guards were alerted to a problem about 5:15 a.m. Tuesday when an inmate told them that Justice, who usually snores, was very quiet. Guards checked Justice and discovered he had no pulse.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/02/09/2997621/brain-aneurysm-killed-dwight-justice.html#storylink=cpy

Maybe God was dissatisfied with the verdict and didn't want this monster walking free one day so took care of him. I'm glad he won't be able to hurt any more children, but sorry that he didn't get to suffer for a while for his participation in the abuse of this poor child. Good riddance!

My thoughts exactly bj....

One less asshat to house and clothe and tend to.

Perhaps threats (or more) from fellow inmates frightened him so much, increased his blood pressure to aneurysm levels. Whatever....

A tearful Kathy Lynn Swafford on Thursday pleaded guilty in a
Cleveland County court to second-degree murder and felony child abuse in
the 2009 death of her 2-year-old son, Jeremiah Swafford.
Kathy Swafford, 23, was scheduled to go on trial Monday in
Lincolnton on charges of first-degree murder and felony child abuse. If
convicted, she could have been sentenced to life without parole.

On Thursday, she was sentenced to a minimum of 18 years but will get credit for the three years she’s already served.

Swafford told Judge Robert Ervin she was not guilty and her
lawyer, Fred Flowers, said Swafford had decided that accepting the plea
agreement “was in her best interest under the circumstances.”

But Donna Willis, who had talked with Swafford, was upset with her niece’s decision.

“She didn’t want any more time and wanted to get it over with,”
Willis said. “I think she should have gone ahead with the trial. She
swore to me she didn’t do it. That’s all she’s ever said to all of us.
Now, people will think she done it. That’s what bothers me.”

Willis still believes in Swafford’s innocence.

“I do not believe her hands killed Jeremiah,” Willis said. “No, I do not.”

Swafford’s husband, Dwight Stacy Justice, also was charged with
first-degree-murder and felony child abuse. In February, a Cleveland
County jury found him guilty on the child abuse charge, but before
sentencing he died in jail. Authorities said the cause was a brain
aneurysm.

The death of Jeremiah Swafford on Feb. 14, 2009, sparked anger
across the region, with many criticizing both the family and
authorities. The boy’s relatives said the Department of Social Services
had ample opportunity to remove the boy from a dangerous situation.

During Justice’s trial, a medical examiner testified the toddler
died from blunt force trauma resulting in brain swelling. The boy had a
6-inch-fracture on his head.

Jeremiah lived with his mother and stepfather in a Shelby
apartment. They were the only adults present when the child suffered the
fatal injuries and suggested he may have been hurt after falling out of
bed or a car seat.

Experts testified the injuries were inconsistent with those
explanations. Justice denied he had anything to do with the boy’s death
and said he didn’t see Swafford do anything.

The defense in the Justice trial called Swafford as a witness, but she declined to testify, citing her First Amendment rights.

Jeannette Boner, a former jail inmate, testified for the defense
that Swafford had admitted behind bars she caused the fatal injuries to
her son by picking him up by his feet and slamming his head into a
wooden part of a couch.

“She asked me, ‘What do you think they’ll do with me?’” Bonner
testified. “When I told her she’d probably spend the rest of her life in
prison, she said if she was going to spend the rest of her life in
prison so was he (Justice.)”

Three minutes later, Bonner said Swafford came up with another story – this time that her husband had killed the toddler.

On Thursday, Swafford showed no emotion in court until the judge asked one last time if she had anything to say.

“I want to tell my family I love them,” she said, crying.

Flowers told the court that Swafford, who has an eighth-grade
education, recognizes there are opportunities in prison “and she plans
to take advantage of them.”

Swafford’s father, Bobby Swafford, said her decision to plead
guilty “was probably in her best interest. They were gonna put it on
somebody.”

He maintained that his daughter was innocent, saying “God took care” of the guilty party.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/03/09/3081841/mother-pleads-guilty-in-death.html


Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/03/09/3081841/mother-pleads-guilty-in-death.html#storylink=cpy