Jayden Murphy

Less-than-lethal force

At around 9:15 p.m., a state trooper pulled over John Murphy III, who had his 10-month-old son Jayden in the car with him. According to police, Murphy drove off when the trooper returned to his car. Police said they started to pursue Murphy, but dropped back out of concern for the child's safety. Murphy's car hit a trailer. Murphy reportedly took Jayden and ran through the woods to his mobile home, where he hid in a cupboard under the sink. The boy's mother found Jayden, not breathing, on the floor. She ran outside and alerted the officers, who were looking for Murphy. Jayden died. Murphy reportedly told police Jayden wasn't breathing after the crash and that he tried to resuscitate him. Police alleged that Murphy covered Jayden's mouth because his cries could have alerted the officers as he ran. An autopsy said Jayden had suffocated. Murphy was initially charged with manslaughter. The charges were dropped because it couldn't be determined if Jayden's death resulted from a criminal act, or an accident.