‘He never really had a chance to live’: Father charged with killing 7-week-old son

A Louisiana man faces first-degree murder charges after police say he punched his 7-week-old son, killing him.

Anthony Dearmas, 25, is charged with first-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to a juvenile in the May 13th death of his son Karter Smith, who was born on March 25.

“How someone can do this to a defenseless infant is beyond me,” St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Randy Smith said. “Even more disturbing is the fact that this was his own child. Mr. Dearmas is where he belongs, behind bars.”

Dearmas, of Slidell, Louisiana, told detectives that he was frustrated by his son’s constant crying, so he punched the baby, forcing him to fall off a couch and injure his head, according to the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. After being called to the residence on May 10, officers found the child not breathing. First responders were able to revive the child and brought him to a local hospital.

Karter was determined to be brain dead and died on May 13.

The child had seven skull fractures and internal bleeding inside the skull, the parish coroner told NOLA.com.

“This is a very heinous incident,” St. Tammany Parish Coroner Charles Preston told NOLA.com. “This is totally consistent with non-accidental trauma.”

Karter had a twin brother named Karmelo, according to WITX. Dearmas was watching the children while their mother was at work, the children’s grandmother told The Advocate.

“This poor child, he never really had a chance to live,” Smith told The Advocate.

Slidell is about 30 miles northeast of New Orleans.

This story was originally published May 16, 2017 at 5:11 PM with the headline "‘He never really had a chance to live’: Father charged with killing 7-week-old son."