Police say father killed his 10-month-old son after gaining temporary custody last month

TUCSON, Arizona. (KOLD/Gray News) – An Arizona man who gained temporary custody of his 10-month-old son last month has now been charged with the child’s murder.

The Tucson Police Department said 28-year-old Jimmy Torre McElroy was arrested on charges of second-degree murder and child abuse.

On Oct. 21, officers responded to an apartment complex following a report of a 10-month-old baby having a seizure, police said.

The tentative complaint indicates the child was taken to Tucson Medical Center, where he was diagnosed with a skull fracture and cerebral hemorrhage. Doctors determined that the child needed emergency surgery.

McElroy allegedly told hospital staff and detectives that the child had suffered two seizures earlier in the day. McElroy changed his story, adding that the baby had fallen out of bed the night before and hit his head on the floor or the leg of the weight bench, according to the tentative complaint.

The child was diagnosed with a midline shift (displacement) in the brain, a skull fracture, and bleeding in both eyes. Doctors did not expect the child to survive.

On October 30, doctors said they did not expect the child to regain consciousness. The baby died this week.

McElroy later allegedly admitted to miscarrying the baby, which landed on its head.

McElroy said the child was having a seizure at the time and he “gently shook the baby to get him out of it.”

Doctors said the description of shaking “gently” was not consistent with the force needed to cause bleeding in the eyes.

A review of McElroy’s phone records showed that he called his mother, his girlfriend, another friend and the child’s pediatrician before calling 911.

McElroy was initially arrested and booked into Pima County Jail on child abuse charges.

Charges were upgraded to include second-degree murder after detectives were notified Tuesday of the baby’s death.

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