A 4-year-old child is in critical but stable condition after 22-year-old Christopher Craig Williams, angry with the child for playing with a door, picked him up above his head by the child’s arms and slammed him to the carpeted concrete floor, causing severe head injuries, seizures and bleeding from the child’s ear.
The child was air-lifted to Shands hospital in Gainesville, where he remains. Williams was arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse, a felony, and booked at the Flagler County jail on $10,000 bond. Three years ago he was arrested on a battery domestic violence charge. The charge was dropped.
The incident occurred at about 3:30 p.m. Saturday at 5 Ethel Lane in Palm Coast, the house Williams apparently shares with the child. The arrest report is heavily redacted, so the relationship between the child and Williams is unclear, but they appear to be close relations or closely familiar with each other. Three other children were at the house at the time of the incident and witnessed the alleged brutality.
One of the witnesses, a young girl, told deputies that the 4-year-old child was playing with the front door, moving it from side to side, when Williams tried to come in. The child closed the door in an apparent attempt to keep Williams from coming in. Williams got mad, the girl told deputies, picked up the 4-year-old by his arms, and threw him against the ground. The child told deputies “it was a hard slam, it was a hard one.” The child began crying and bleeding from his ear, the witness said. “She then said that she put paper towels inside his ear because there was a lot of blood coming out,” the arrest report states. “She also said that [they] tried to talk to him but he wouldn’t talk because maybe he couldn’t hear us.”
Two other young witnesses corroborated the first witness’ account, describing Williams walking out the door after slamming the child to the ground, and specifying that Williams had picked up the child by both arms, throwing the child in the air. Earlier, one of the children told deputies, Williams had been biking and had appeared mad, leaning against a car after biking. That’s when the 4-year-old boy was “slamming the door from side to side,” the young witness said.
Williams demonstrated to a deputy how he picked up the child. Williams’s account of the incident is mostly redacted, as statements in arrest reports that may be self-incriminating typically are. But as he was going through his motions recreating the incident, “It should be noted that [Williams] also looked upwards as if to look at the child,” the deputy reported.
Rich Mikola says
Why is the bail so low? This dirt bag will be back on the street before the child is out of the hospital.
confidential says
This are the unexpected, unplanned innocent babies conceived by just sexual satisfaction without stable responsible planned parenthood. They become tragic victims of their young inexperienced unwilling progenitors. That is why we need Planned Parenthood Services!!
Scott says
Ok prior to this horrific incident, who was watching the children before he got there?
The Geode says
This is the product of a “welfare system” that rewards irresponsible people to procreate and breed indiscriminately, get free money and housing, harbor bum after BUM with no desire of gainful employment, and expose the children to anybody willing to give them attention. The attention is for the “baby-mama”. Obviously, nobody cares about the children. …except me and MY tax dollars.
brian says
The Geode is 100% correct. If the government would penalize irresponsible and indiscriminate breeding instead of rewarding it – reduce the welfare and food stamp benefit instead of increasing it for every child they spit out – the baby mammas would hopefully begin closing their legs. The results would not only be the huge saving in government spending, but also a significant reduction in crime over time.
Halfright says
This is on facebook as well. This photo and story will be there forever. Convicts don’t take kindly to this kind of things, either. Karma
Glooby Gloob says
$10,000 bond for causing a child to be airlifted to Shands? Really?
Sherry says
Right On Confidential! Now all we need is many more people to understand why Planned Parenthood is so vitally important! You simply can’t have it both ways. Forcing children to be born into this kind of environment and situation is heart breaking and criminal!
[email protected] says
This is exactly way birth control should be readily available to all women. Cheaper to pay for that with tax dollars than to support countless children until they become adults.
Anonymous says
We’re talking about an animal and a baby whose in critical condition what the fk does food stamps and welfare got to do with anything. Y’all don’t know what the baby might be a product of! Only welfare ppl commit crimes come on now let’s not stereo type anyone and pray for this baby’s recovery!!!! In Jesus name amen
Sherry says
Yes. . . of course. . . prayers are always a needed blessing in these situations. But, we must all do more than just pray. We are blessed with intelligence, and free will. . . we as citizens must advocate for better lives for each human being and sometimes that does mean contraception and even the morning after pill.
The “quality” of existence for each life should be our human responsibility. Labeling those struggling with inequality as “less deserving” is despicable!
jbeagles says
His bond is $20,000,00 Glooby gloob, which is still too low but the Judges don’t set the bond schedule
Tired of it says
I have seen my share of injured babies and dead babies in my job from out of control animals that abuse the children. This guy never should see the light of day again outside a prison. As far as birth control is concerned the health department provides birth control pills to those that need it, but taking them would keep the lazy A# people that keep spitting out kids from getting additional free money and food stamps they can trade for liquor and drugs.
Bc says
This guy will be out of jail soon. Flagler county judges need to be held accountable it’s a joke with the amount of release of criminals in this county Vote them out
Jim Bo says
😡
Nancy N. says
Bigots, please crawl back in your holes where you came from. You all are making racist assumptions about welfare and “baby mamas” that are based on nothing known about this case other than the color of the skin of the arrestee. Take it somewhere that it’s more welcome. Like the local Donald Trump campaign meeting.
jbeagles, judges do set bond – they aren’t just pulling it off of a table set by someone else. Compare bonds in Flagler, and St. John’s for instance, and you’ll see that bonds in Flagler are routinely much lower even for serious offenses. But don’t forget – what may seem a low bond to you may be completely unattainable to someone else, especially the classes of people who are most likely to be arrested. A surprisingly large portion of defendants spend their pre-trial time in jail because they can’t afford to bond out, even at “low” bond rates.
Who says
They said bond schedule
Sw says
Take off the Rose glasses
joanne says
How is the little boy, no one has asked. I pray he is OK
SanitySpeaks says
Wow! Just wow! This is a horrible situation in which a child left severely injured. And some people have the nerve and the assumption to insinuate that this child was not wanted!? Also you arrogant people have the audacity to suggest that Due to such a horrific incident Planned Parenthood needs to be available??? For what? Abortions, because we all know birth control is easily attainable. Apparently you’re under the impression that this child was never wanted! Unless you are the mother, you wouldn’t know. I don’t believe this guy is the father of the child. Have some compassion for this family rather than using their tragedy as a springboard to promote your personal agenda. Shame on you and prayers to the family, especially the injured 4 yr old.
The Geode says
Nancy N. I usually don’t respond to opinions but I will respond to your assumptions that only WHITE people are tire of the current “welfare system”. I am BLACK. I have more at stake with the destructiveness of this system than YOU do. I see MY neighborhoods destroyed by crime, out of control STDs and 15 year olds having babies “just because”. MY race seems to use the welfare system the way corporate America uses a 401K. Children are used as commodities. A means to an end rather than a life to guide, love or cherish. Nobody should create a problem with the knowledge of someone else will be forced to pay for their mistakes. It’s MY race producing emotionless robots with no aim. No guidance. No harmony. No love and that produces people who sees NO hope. When the only light at the end of the tunnel has a “welfare stipend” attached to it, what direction is there to travel?
Some people NEED help. Some people NEED assistance. Some people NEED a hand up. Instead, we are raising a dependent culture that begins with the crumbs the government is willing to dole out to those unwilling to work but continue to drag a particular race into the abyss.
So no, Nancy N. I am NOT white. I am NOT anti-aid. I am NOT implying only Black people get “welfare” because it’s certainly NOT the case. I am however against the abuse of the children. I am against seeing young men devoid of hope, training and guidance leaning on women for his existence. I am against seeing women devoid of love, attention and esteem being used as “puppy mills” for unwanted pups.
Nancy N. Please do not assume that everything you don’t agree with is always “racial”. Sometimes, a rant can be borne of frustration and not hate. I weep for the kids. FUCK those who has a choice but insist upon choosing blindly