A Henry County mother and her boyfriend have been charged with murder following the death of a 6-year-old boy who was found unconscious with extensive bruises, according to police.
On Sunday, Henry officers were called to Belmont Farms Drive in Ellenwood about a report that a child was unconscious.
“Officers arrived on scene and located the 6-year-old who had shallow breathing, was unresponsive and had blood coming from the mouth,” Capt. Randy Lee said in an emailed statement.
The boy, identified by police as Jacob Andrew Williams, was taken to Piedmont Henry Hospital. There, hospital employees told officers the child had numerous bruises covering the majority of his body, Lee said.
The child was then taken by helicopter to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston, where he was placed on life support, police said.
The boy’s mother, DeShante Lashawn Beard, 33, and her boyfriend, Less Thompson, 29, were both arrested and charged with aggravated assault, aggravated battery and first-degree cruelty to children, according to police. They were booked into the Henry jail.
On Wednesday evening, Jacob was removed from life support, Lee said. On Thursday morning, the charges were upgraded for Beard and Thompson to include malice murder and felony murder.
A spokesman for Henry public schools said Jacob was enrolled from August through October of the recent school year.
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