A 38-year-old man is facing murder and child abuse charges
in the death of his girlfriend's baby.
Sonny Larsen, 38, was arraigned on charges of open murder and first-degree child abuse Thursday, Nov. 15, in the death of the 7-month-old infant.
Larsen, who lived with his girlfriend and her four children and watched the infant on a daily basis while she worked, admitted to detectives that he harmed the child, an officer said during a probable cause hearing in Kalamazoo County District Court Thursday, Nov. 15.
Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety officers responded to an unresponsive infant. They attempted lifesaving efforts and transported the infant to Bronson Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Larsen said he became upset in the morning because the baby was crying and he was unable to calm him. He said he violently shook the baby, causing the baby to stop breathing, and threw him to the floor. He said he attempted but couldn't resuscitate him, then laid him in a pack-and-play even though he knew he was dead.
Larsen said he went to sleep for several hours. His girlfriend looked in on the baby when she got home from work around 5:30 p.m., but he told her he was sleeping, according to probable cause testimony..