A 19-year-old Oregon man has been charged with murder in the death of his 6-week-old son.
The Gladstone Police received a call on April 20th after Randall Children’s Hospital admitted a boy with a severe brain injury, as per KPTV. Initially, Maliki Skutley faced charges of first-degree assault following a police investigation of the incident.
Tragically, the young boy named Paxton Schuler passed away three days later. Subsequently, the accused killer was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of second-degree murder in addition to the assault charge.
Police have not provided details about the assault, which they said took place on April 16, except to say that Skutley was “deliberately cruel.”
An autopsy said the child died by lack of oxygen to the brain caused by blunt force trauma or extreme pressure.
According to the Clackamas County DA’s office, the boy’s mother entrusted Skutley with the child while she was at work. The family was residing at the Budget Inn in Gladstone during the time of the incident.
A GoFundMe said little Paxton was declared brain dead and the mother opted to “let him go.”
