MORGAN STOUT - 8 months -(2009) Enid OK

A man has been arrested on charges of first-degree murder of an 8-month-old child.

Enid police received an emergency call about an unresponsive child.
When they arrived at 1620 E. Eucalyptus, officers found Terry Ledbetter
holding 8-month-old Morgan Stout. The baby was unresponsive and his
skin was blue.
Morgan Stout was transported to an area hospital before he was
air-lifted to Integris Baptist Hospital where he died two days later.
Ledbetter was taking care of the baby when he became unresponsive, but he is not related to the child.
Detectives interviewed Ledbetter, who offered several explanations
of how the child came to be unresponsive, but medical evidence did not
support any of his explanations.
The preliminary ruling from the medical examiner’s office said the cause of death was a non-accidental injury.
The 39-year-old was arrested during a traffic stop on a first-degree murder charge without incident.

The State of Oklahoma vs Terry Lee Ledbetter

http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/griffin/NEWS9/PDF/0910/8-Month-Old%20Death.pdf

06-13-2011	CTFREE		LEDBETTER, TERRY LEE	5545641	Jun 13 2011 10:16:52:817AM		$ 0.00
	JUDGE NEWBY MTN DOCKET: STATE/T MCMICHAEL; DEFT/T BEEBE; JURY TRIAL SET ON 10/4/11 @9:00 AM

http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/GetCaseInformation.asp?submitted=true&viewtype=caseGeneral&casemasterID=227680&db=Garfield

Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 9:00 AM
JURY TRIAL (3 days) --- (cont'd. to 1-23-12)(TRJ) LEDBETTER, TERRY LEE Tom Newby
Monday, November 14, 2011 at 10:00 AM
BOND APPEARANCE(BA) LEDBETTER, TERRY LEE Tom Newby
Monday, January 23, 2012 at 9:00 AM
JURY TRIAL (3 days) --- (cont'd. from 10-4-11)(TRJ) LEDBETTER, TERRY LEE Tom Newby


http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/GetCaseInformation.asp?submitted=true&viewtype=caseGeneral&casemasterID=227680&db=Garfield

February 17, 2012

Enid man pleads guilty in 2009 death of 7-month-old boy

ENID —
A 42-year-old Enid man charged in the 2009 death of a 7-month-old boy
entered a guilty plea Thursday to an amended charge of first-degree
manslaughter.

Terry Lee Ledbetter was charged Oct. 6, 2009, with first-degree murder
in the death of 7-month-old Morgan Stout. Ledbetter was set for trial
Tuesday on the first-degree murder charge.

According to a plea form filed in Garfield County District Court,
Ledbetter entered an Alford plea to a reduced charge of manslaughter,
which is punishable by four years to life in prison.

An Alford plea is a guilty plea, but the defendant does not admit any
guilt, but admits the prosecution likely could prove the charge.

Associate District Judge Tom Newby accepted the plea Thursday and
ordered a pre-sentencing investigation be conducted before sentencing
April 25. There is no agreement with prosecutors, and Newby will
sentence Ledbetter at the April hearing.

Stout was in Ledbetter’s care Sept. 29, 2009, when Ledbetter called
911, reporting the boy was unresponsive. The boy was treated at St.
Mary’s Regional Medical Center and later flown to Integris Baptist
Hospital in Oklahoma City. The boy died at 5:13 p.m. Oct. 1, 2009.

According to the boy’s doctor at Integris, Stout suffered from massive
brain swelling and retinal hemorrhages, and was a victim of shaken baby
syndrome. An autopsy performed by Oklahoma City Medical Examiner’s
Office found the preliminary ruling for the cause of Stout’s death was
“non-accidental injury.”

Ledbetter told police the boy had been in his care all day Sept. 29. He
said he had given the boy a bottle, containing oatmeal, at about 11:30
a.m. He said he later placed Stout in his crib with a bottle containing
water and only left the boy alone for 45 seconds to a minute to take the
trash out.

Ledbetter said when he returned, the boy’s arms were to his side, and
when he picked the boy up he noticed the boy had gone limp, according to
an affidavit filed in the case. He said he carried the boy to the
couch, called 911 and took the boy outside when he could hear emergency
sirens.

Ledbetter later told police the boy had rolled himself over and he
thought this might have caused the boy’s injuries, according to the
affidavit. He later contacted police and said he must have rolled over
the boy and this had caused his injuries, according to the affidavit.
http://enidnews.com/localnews/x143597040/Enid-man-pleads-guilty-in-2009-death-of-7-month-old-boy

Some interesting comments from the family of the murdered infant at the above link.

what is moms liability in this? i get so angry when these mothers act they're victims!!! they r not victims!

I haven't seen enough history on this particular case to know.

But, it is usually the case that when a POS murders a baby it is not the first time he has abused the baby. That means the mother is fully aware of the abuse and also responsible for the murder.

More of these mothers need to be arrested and tried.