TEZ'ARRION ARMOUR - 2 yo (2008) - Manatee/Bradenton FL

by TomTerrific0420 Sat Sep 04, 2010 3:01 pm

Dwight A. Baldwin today was found guilty of first-degree murder in the
Oct. 27, 2008, beating death of 2-year-old Tez-arrion Armour, who he had
been baby-sitting.Baldwin was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.Taking
the stand in his own defense, Baldwin on Thursday admitted to hit the
child but said he never hit him in the head. A doctor testified that
Tez-arrion died from head injuries.The
jury began its deliberation just before 4:30 p.m. Thursday, but after a
couple of hours jurors told Circuit Judge Thomas Gallen they wanted to
take today to review several pieces of evidence from the case, including
Baldwin's interview with investigators at Manatee County Sheriff's
Office and transcripts of recordings investigators made of a
conversation between Baldwin and his girlfriend, Audrey Lawrence.Baldwin
placed Tez-arrion on a training toilet and continued to beat the child
after the child fell asleep, according to trial testimony.Over the course of a few hours, the child continued to receive beatings.Baldwin
had positioned the training toilet close to the bed, from where he
continued to beat the child, according to prosecutors.Carolyn
Schlemmer, a public defender who is representing Baldwin, said her
client admits he struck the child, but stressed he never hit the child
in the head.Lawrence and Baldwin were the only adults in the residence at the time.Schlemmer
argued in court Baldwin took the blame in order to protect Lawrence,
from further charges. Lawrence took a deal for a lesser sentence to
testify against Baldwin. She served 364 days in jail for aggravated
child abuse."We talked about it. It was basically me taking
everything," Baldwin said on the stand Thursday. "They can't do anything
else. She already took a plea deal."The beatings occurred in at
least three separate incidents lasting from about 8 a.m. until about
noon when paramedics had to be called when Tez-arrion stopped breathing,
according to testimony. The couple told emergency personnel Tez-arrion
was suffering from asthma.Evidence presented in trial included
Tez-arrion's Spider-Man pajamas, a fly swatter broken into two pieces, a
black belt and photos of the child's injuries.Lawrence began putting cold water on the child to try to revive him, according to statements.An
emergency room doctor at Manatee Memorial Hospital who treated
Tez-arrion testified earlier this week the child had blood in his urine,
low body temperature and multiple injuries, including bruises, and
appeared to be in a state of shock and near death.The child was
unable to breathe on his own and was transferred to All Children's
Hospital in St. Petersburg, where he later died.The child died from head injuries; he had brain swelling and bleeding.