A Coweta County man charged in the beating death of his 5-week-old son was arraigned Tuesday in the county jail and assigned an Aug. 22 trial date, a prosecutor said.
Johnny Lee Edwards pleaded not guilty to malice murder, felony murder and two counts each of cruelty to children in the first degree and aggravated battery in the death of Austin Edwards, Assistant District Attorney Kevin McMurry said.
Edwards will face trial in Coweta Superior Court in Newnan.
Austin died Jan. 30 at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston. Police said the child had injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome. Doctors found broken bones and internal bleeding.
The state Division of Family and Children Services said it had prior contact with the family when the agency was called in over concerns that the parents would not follow a medical plan for the boy.
Austin was placed in the residence of his grandmother, with the parents permitted to live in the same residence. The parents were living with the infant in a pool house on the premises of the grandmother's home.
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