Update: 3:40 p.m. on Feb. 17:
The mother of the three-year-old who died after a severe beating is charged with 2nd degree murder along with her boyfriend who was also charged in the murder.
Jamie (Miller) Litton also faces additional charges of endangering the welfare of a child.
The probable cause statement for Thomas Joseph Presley showed the scene for a severe beating at the home where three-year-old Blake Litton was assaulted.
Presley told authorities he began hitting the child around 2:30 Thursday morning when he became enraged with the toddler.
"I really beat him bad this time," the probable cause quoted Presley as saying.
The probable cause statement said Presley told authorities he blacked out during the beating and hit the child more times than he could remember with the heel of his hand. He said he kicked the child. According to the statement, Presley put the child to bed thinking he would be OK, but 30 minutes later, Presley said he heard a loud noise in the kitchen of the home and found the toddler on the floor unresponsive. He said the child was injured badly and was gasping for breath while his eyes rolled into the back of his head.
According to the probable cause statement, Presley drove the child to the mother's place of employment. He then began driving to Versailles to seek hospital treatment for the child. According to the probable cause statement, that's when he realized the child had died and called EMS.
Presley then told authorities he made up the story about the car hitting the child.
Update: 4:53 p.m. on Feb. 16:
The mother of a Morgan County three-year-old who died early Thursday morning and her boyfriend have been arrested pending murder charges.
Stover County authorities said Thomas Joseph Presley is facing 2nd degree murder charges and they expect the mother, Jamie Miller to be charged as well.
Early this morning, the death was reported as a hit-and-run accident with a toddler walking along the side of the road. Authorities now say that was a lie. They said inconsistencies in the story as well as violent trauma to the toddler's head and torso led them to that conclusion.
Authorities said Litton was beaten at 105 Oak Park Lane in Stover and taken to the highway. That's when the 911 call came in for the hit and run. Authorities found Litton with severe injuries. He was pronounced dead at 6:30 a.m.
After the initial hit-and-run call, law enforcement investigating the crime found inconsistencies with Presley's story and evidence found at the scene. That's when they figured out the boy was assaulted at the home.
Original Story:
A toddler was killed in a hit-and-run accident Thursday morning in Morgan County.
The accident happened at 5:15 a.m. on Missouri 135 at Buttons Road.
According to the Highway Patrol’s online records, 3-year-old Blake Litton walked from the ditch line into a lane of traffic. An unknown car hit the toddler, left the scene and continued driving northbound.
Litton was pronounced dead around 6:30 a.m.
The investigation continues.
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