Inset: Billie Jo Tustin (Franklin County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The home where Tustin allegedly threw her infant (WSYX).
An Ohio mother, aged 30, has been arrested following accusations of hurling her 9-month-old baby across a room, critically injuring the child.
Billie Jo Tustin was detained on Thursday and faces a felonious assault charge for causing severe harm to the infant, according to records reviewed by Law&Crime.
Columbus Division of Fire emergency medical staff arrived around 5 p.m. on Wednesday at the family’s residence on North 4th Street in Columbus’ Italian Village area in response to an unresponsive baby, The Columbus Dispatch reported, referencing court documents.
Upon reaching the scene, first responders found the baby and quickly transported him to Nationwide Children’s Hospital for medical care. The infant was admitted in “extremely” critical condition, as per local CBS affiliate WBNS reported.
The hospital staff reportedly said the child’s injuries were “not consistent with an accident” and contacted law enforcement.
By approximately 6:30 p.m. that evening, Columbus Division of Police officers responded to the same address after receiving a report about the severely injured child in a “suspicious” circumstance. Police found several adults and a toddler who seemed unharmed at the location.
In a criminal complaint secured by local ABC and Fox affiliate WSYX, Tustin allegedly confessed to law enforcement that she threw the baby across a room measuring around 15 feet. The infant purportedly landed on his head, sustaining multiple traumatic injuries.
Tustin also reportedly confessed to throwing the child shorter distances multiple times, spanking him, and even slapping him in the face, saying she did so when she got frustrated. In fact, police said in an incident report that the victim’s injuries were so serious that the department’s homicide unit was charged with investigating the incident.
Tustin is currently being held in the James A. Karnes corrections center without bond. She is scheduled to appear in court for her arraignment at Franklin County Municipal Court on Sept. 19, court recrods show.
The child remained in critical condition and was on life support, a police spokesperson told WSYX.
“We’re not sure if he’s going to pull through, so we want to make sure we are doing everything we can, if this is in fact a crime scene, that we figure out exactly what happened,” Sgt. James Fuqua told the station.
