Father hurt infant, broke bones over ‘excessive crying,’ police say

MILLBROOK, Ala. (WSFA) - Millbrook Police Chief P.K. Johnson has released information on an arrest stemming from a infant who arrived at Children’s Hospital.

Johnson said a 2-month-old was airlifted from Baptist East to Children’s Hospital with severe head trauma. His department was notified Sunday and began an investigation.

Johnson said the baby’s father, Marterrius C. Moore, 22, of Millbrook, told hospital staff and subsequently the police that he had dropped his child the previous Tuesday.

The medical treatment revealed that the infant had multiple injuries to the head and body, including multiple fractured bones, according to Johnson.

Johnson said medical personnel and investigators determined Moore’s statement on how the child became injured was “implausible.”

“Detectives from the Millbrook Police Department conducted an interview with Mr. Moore, during which he admitted to injuring the child on several occasions due to the child’s excessive crying,” the chief said in a news release.

Moore was arrested on a charge of aggravated child abuse, a Class A felony due to the victim’s age. He remains in the Elmore County Jail without bail, pending warrants being obtained, according to the release.

“This case both breaks my heart and sickens me. ... I can assure you that we’ll do everything in our power to present the best case that we can to the District Attorney’s Office to get justice for the horrible treatment that this child had to endure,” Johnson said.