Ocean County

NJ Man Charged With ‘Tragic' Murder of 3-Month-Old Daughter: Prosecutor

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NBC News

What to Know

  • A 36-year-old New Jersey man was charged with murder in connection to the death of his baby daughter earlier this week, the Ocean County's prosecutor announced Thursday.
  • David Smith, of Lakewood, is currently in the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing following his arrest Wednesday, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer. Attorney information was not immediately known.
  • The charge is in connection to events that unfolded starting Saturday following a report of a three-month-old girl, who was allegedly found to be unresponsive by her father, who is Smith. On Tuesday, the baby girl succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead

A 36-year-old New Jersey man was charged with murder in connection to the death of his baby daughter earlier this week, the Ocean County's prosecutor announced Thursday.

David Smith, of Lakewood, is currently in the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing following his arrest Wednesday, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer. Attorney information was not immediately known.

The charge is in connection to events that unfolded starting Saturday, when detectives from the Lakewood Township Police Department and the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit responded to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus in Lakewood following a report of a three-month-old girl, who was allegedly found to be unresponsive by her father, who is Smith.  

According to the prosecutor's office, Smith claimed that he called 911 upon finding the infant unresponsive. The infant was initially taken to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus by emergency medical service personnel and then transferred to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick for further evaluation and treatment. 

An examination by doctors at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital allegedly revealed that the infant was suffering from significant internal injuries. Further investigation determined that Smith was allegedly home with the baby on Saturday when she sustained her injuries.

On Tuesday, the baby girl succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead. The following day, a post mortem examination was performed on the infant and the Ocean County Medical Examiner determined the cause of death was Shaken Baby Syndrome with blunt force trauma to the head, and the manner of death to be Homicide.

“The facts and circumstances uncovered in this investigation are beyond tragic.  What happened to this innocent baby is disturbing,” Billhimer said in a statement.  “We in law enforcement will always stand up and fight for the most vulnerable members in our society, and no one is more vulnerable than an infant. Parents are supposed to protect, not harm, their children. Justice will be accomplished for this precious baby."

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