WF man accused of abuse in infant's death

WICHITA FALLS, Tx (RNN Texoma) - A Wichita Falls man has been booked into the Wichita Co. Jail charged with Injury to a Child, which is a first-degree felony.

Sean Anthony Richardson, 25, was booked on Tuesday morning. His arrest stems from an incident on May 21, 2017.

According to arrest warrant documents, around 12:15 p.m. WFPD officers were dispatched to an apartment in the 5500 block of Professional Drive for an unresponsive child call.

When police arrived, first responders were performing CPR on the 4-month-old victim. The child was rushed to United Regional by ambulance and later care flighted to Cook Children's Hospital in Fort Worth.

Officers said when they spoke to Richardson, he said he was the only adult home with the infant that morning. Documents state Richardson told officers he bottle fed the baby six ounces around 6 a.m. and the child went back to sleep.

Then around 10 a.m. the child woke up again and Richardson said the baby was sweaty so he gave him a bath.

Richardson told police, "he was looking around and smiling and everything was fine." Richardson went on to say he dried the baby and put a diaper on him following the bath and the baby was sucking on his hand as if he was hungry so Richardson went to make him another bottle.

Richardson told police, he put the baby in a rocker and went into the kitchen to make a bottle, adding he "maintained visual on the child" while making the bottle.

Richardson said when he took the bottle to the baby he noticed the child's eyes were rolling towards the back of his head and he was unresponsive.

According to police, the time Richardson said he asked a neighbor to call 911 and when the alleged incident occurred involved a "gap in time."

On May 22, 2017, detectives were notified by medical staff at Cook Children's Hospital that the baby had brain bleeding on both sides and the parents could not explain what happened.

Officials told police the baby suffered abusive head trauma.

The following day, hospital officials contacted WFPD again about the baby's injuries. They said the child had significant ligament damage down his neck and spine.

Officials said there was no medical explanation for the victim's injuries besides abuse.

On June 1, 2017, the infant died from his injuries. The body was sent to Tarrant County for an autopsy. The doctor performing the autopsy told detectives the child "would not have been able to track with his eyes, consume six ounces of formula, or suck on his hand" as described by Richardson.

The doctor said this type of injury would have occurred by some type of force trauma. The cause of death was hypoxic/ischemic encephalopathy, etiology undetermined. Documents state the manner of death was undetermined.

A warrant for Richardson's arrest was issued on February 26, 2018. He was booked into the Wichita Co. Jail and charged with Injury to a Child. His bond has been set at $200,000.

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