Inset: James Dawson (Poinsett County Sheriff”s Office). Background: The house where Dawson allegedly left his baby alone in a bathtub in Lepanto, Ark. (Google Maps).
An Arkansas man has been taken into custody after allegedly leaving his infant son unattended in a bathtub, resulting in the child’s tragic drowning, authorities reported.
James Dawson, 31, has been charged with manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a minor, according to the Poinsett County Sheriff’s Office.
The incident unfolded in early October 2025, at a home on Will Henry Drive in Lepanto, a small town approximately 25 miles west of the Mississippi River, near the Tennessee border.
On October 2, emergency services from the Lepanto Fire Department and Lepanto Police Department responded to a distress call reporting an unresponsive 11-month-old who had drowned. This information was detailed in an arrest warrant affidavit, as reported by the Jonesboro-based KAIT and NEA Report.
The infant was immediately transported to Le Bonheur Hospital in Jonesboro, located about 40 miles northwest of Lepanto. Sadly, the child passed away the following day, as outlined in the charging documents.
Investigations reveal that the child’s mother had left the house to assist with her father’s dogs shortly after Dawson returned from work, leaving him to supervise their children. According to police, Dawson began preparing a bath for the infant, who was unsettled near bedtime, while the two older children were occupied with a tablet.
The defendant then put the baby in the bathtub, according to the charging document. The man said he then went to seat their other children at the kitchen table but got into an argument with them because they did not want to eat dinner, law enforcement alleges.
Amid the argument over what the children’s mom had cooked, Dawson grabbed a bowl of food and sat down, saying it “slipped” his mind that the baby was still alone in the bathtub, according to the affidavit. The man said his wife returned “probably a minute later.”
Once she got back home, the woman asked why water was running in the bathroom, the defendant allegedly told law enforcement.
“Oh my God, the baby’s in there,” Dawson exclaimed, according to the affidavit — before running out of the kitchen with his wife.
The mother and father rushed into the bathroom to find their baby facedown in the bathtub and unresponsive, police say. Dawson immediately began performing CPR while his wife called 911.
The defendant allegedly kept repeating “it’s all my fault,” and that he “forgot,” according to the affidavit.
After executing a search warrant at the family’s home, the Poinsett County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division noted the defendant’s recliner was on the opposite side of the house from the bathroom where the child drowned, according to the affidavit.
Dawson also handed over Ring doorbell camera footage from the night in question which showed he got home from work at 6:46 p.m., then his wife left at 6:52 p.m. and that she returned at 7:22 p.m.
Law enforcement was called to the residence at 7:24 p.m. that night.
The defendant was arrested on Tuesday and briefly detained before being released some 30 minutes later, authorities said.
A court appearance in the case has yet to be scheduled.
