Put Down The Penis, Thursday Edition: Boyfriend Kills Baby, Mother All Shocked

[impqueen]

This time it's in Utah. At least we got a different state today.


Police in Orem, Utah say a baby died after being abused by his mother's boyfriend.

Austin Pettersson, age 13 months, died Tuesday. Police on Wednesday arrested Christopher S. Thunborg, 22, on suspicion of child abuse homicide.

Orem police said Thunborg is the boyfriend of Austin's mother and they live with a third adult in an Orem apartment. One witness said the baby was sick and fussy Monday night and Thunborg woke to care for the boy, police said.

On Tuesday morning, Thunborg told the mother Austin was not breathing, police said. Austin was pronounced dead at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center. Officers found bruising on the child's back and stomach, police said, and a medical examiner determined he died from internal injuries.

When questioned by detectives, Thunborg said he fell while carrying Austin, police said. Thunborg later invoked his right to remain silent and asked for an attorney. Orem police said he will be booked into the Utah County jail today.

Source article : http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_8561013

You know the dude has a Myspace, I just haven't gotten around to looking for it yet.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Christopher Thunborg was found not guilty by a 4th District Court jury of second-degree felony child abuse homicide for the March 11, 2008, death of 13-month-old Austin Pettersson, said Utah County Attorney Jeff Buhman.

However, Thunborg was found guilty of obstructing justice, a third-degree felony. He faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced by Judge David Mortensen.
[...]

Thunborg took the witness stand this week and denied intentionally harming the child. He did, however, describe an accidental fall with the boy.

Thunborg -- who was watching the boy for his girlfriend, 19-year-old Whitney Pettersson -- testified that the child was in his arms when he stepped on a puppy, fell to the floor and landed on top of the boy.

"It seemed like he got the wind knocked out of him," Thunborg said, adding that the boy stopped crying as soon as he saw his bottle.

Thunborg testified that he thought no more about the fall until he was being interviewed by police, following Austin's death.

An autopsy revealed what the medical examiner called the likely cause of death -- a laceration on the boy's small intestine and a tear in his stomach -- caused by blunt-force trauma to the abdomen.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13838112

[badfish76]

I pray the stepped on the puppy story is true, otherwise there is no justice here.

[MadeaBecBec]

Maybe they suspected the Mom, Whitney Rathjen Pettersson!!
http://www.heraldextra.com/news/loca...701e8b95b.html

His father, Erick Pierce, testified on Friday(Nove 13) that every time he picked up his son for a weekend visit, something new was wrong. Austin began getting sick constantly, with diarrhea, blood in his diapers and flu-like symptoms. He seemed to be losing weight "incredibly fast," Erick Pierce said.

When the Division of Child and Family Services visited Austin's home to inquire about bruising on his ears, Pierce said he thought he might finally get answers, and he recalled showing them bruises on Austin's back.

Investigator Yolanda Stewart said that in her interview with Erick Pierce after his son died, the father related his concerns to her, saying there always seemed to be a new accident.

"To him, that was strange to the point where he and his family started taking photographs of Austin with these injuries," she said.

Doctors became suspicious of Austin's bruises as well, particularly the bruises on his ears that prompted a visit from DCFS. Beverly Vargo, a pediatrician at Alpine Pediatrics, testified she was suspicious of the bruising on the tops of both of his ears when Austin was brought to her office on Jan. 9, 2008. Though Rathjen asked whether the bruises could have occurred because of an ear infection, she also said the boy had not been pulling at his ears excessively.

"I have seen that bruising before and have learned that that bruising can come from being slapped across the head," Vargo said.

Vargo testified that she ran blood tests to see if Austin bruised easily and tried to think of any possible cause of the bruising. She said it was possible the bruising may have come from him rolling on his ears or pulling at them, but his history did not support these theories. The fact that the bruising was on both ears was also a red flag, she said.

As the hours-long interview progressed, Thunborg was asked what could have happened to harm Austin. Stewart, who interviewed him, asked whether an accident ever happened or if he got frustrated. Austin ate plenty of food for dinner that night, and Stewart told him the baby would have been crying and would not have wanted to eat when his intestine was injured. Thunborg, however, said he could think of nothing that would have happened to Austin, and said he never cried hard during the night. He said Austin must have fallen to get bruises, because "nobody would do that to him."

"It just doesn't make sense to me," he said.

When did Thunborg come up with the tripping and falling story? After he lawyered up?

Christopher Thunborg

[MadeaBecBec]

Austin Petterrsson

So sorry, Austin, No real Justice, yet! Fly Baby Fly!

[OMalley]

That baby boy was so sweet & beautiful. I really hope that justice was served in this case but it doesn't sound like it...The bruising...

Poor little sweetheart.

[MadeaBecBec]

I suppose they will take this to trial now:

AMERICAN FORK -- A man charged with child abuse homicide and obstruction of justice faces another criminal charge stemming from an alleged assault at work.

Christopher Thunborg, 22, was arrested March 12 after Orem police investigated the death of Thunborg's girlfriend's baby -- 13-month- old Austin Pettersson -- who was in Thunborg's care while the baby's mother was at work

But nearly a week before that arrest, American Fork police officers had been investigating an assault that happened sometime between March 2 and 6 at the Utah State Developmental Center in American Fork, where Thunborg works, Sgt. Shauna Greening said.

The facility is a residential and rehabilitation center for adults with mental and physical disabilities .

Greening said they received a report about an altercation between two clients, which upset another client -- the alleged victim.

"It looks like (staff) calmed him down, but then Thunborg grabbed him around the neck and took him down," Greening said. "It seemed like it was de-escalating then Thunborg assaulted the client."

Thunborg allegedly tackled the 20-year-old client, then put his knee on the alleged victim's back and neck area to keep him down, Greening said.

Thunborg was charged in American Fork's 4th District Justice Court March 19 with aggravated abuse of an elderly or disabled adult and that day, entered not-guilty pleas.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m.../ai_n24957813/

I am truly frustrated that the jury didn't find him guilty....Grrrrr....