STATESVILLE, N.C. — A two-year-old child’s stepfather entered an Alford plea on Dec. 12 to second-degree murder in the toddler’s death that happened on Sept. 5, 2019, in Statesville.
Officers with the Statesville Police Department were called to a home at 1203 Alexander Street for an unresponsive child.
[ 27-year-old man charged in toddler's death, Statesville police say ]
Jordan Simmons said he took the child on a motorcycle ride and there was an accident.
He told police they came home and he put the toddler in in a bathtub and left the premises briefly.
Simmons said he came back and the child was unresponsive. The child was taken to Iredell Memorial Hospital and died.
The child’s injuries were inconsistent with Simmon’s story, police said.
He was then arrested and charged with second-degree murder and felony child abuse with serious injury.
After last week’s conviction, he was sentenced to about 10 to 13 years in prison.
A defendant maintains their innocence in an Alford plea.
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