By Wayne Gates –
Donald Martin, Jr. pleaded guilty in connection to the death of his 11 year old step-grandson last November.
Martin was charged with Reckless Homicide, a third degree felony, last December. He pleaded guilty to the charge in front of Common Pleas Judge Scott Gusweiler on April 26.
Martin will be sentenced by Gusweiler on May 8 following a pre-sentencing investigation.
The incident happened in Martin’s home on Nov. 17.
“The grandfather restrained the child in a living room area on a couch. He’s a 400 pound man and this was an 11 year old child. He restrained him on the couch and that resulted in the boys death,” said Brown County Prosecutor Zac Corbin in an interview with The Brown County Press last November.
“It’s a horribly tragic and very sad incident. The family was obviously devastated by the situation. From what we know, there was obviously a situation with the child and it resulted in a fairly significant struggle. At that time, Mr. Martin restrained the child and what ultimately occurred was that the child died,” Corbin said.
According to the The Brown County Sheriff’s Department, a life squad was called to Martin’s home at 6:40 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 17. The caller told dispatchers that an 11 year old boy at that location had been having a temper tantrum, passed out and was experiencing shallow breaths. When the life squad arrived, the found the child unresponsive.
He was taken to Mt. Orab Mercy, where he was pronounced dead. Brown County Sheriff Gordon Ellis said at the time that deputies were called to the hospital and began the investigation.
Neither Corbin or Defense Attorney Bruce Wallace had any comment at the time of Martin’s guilty plea.