NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A Tennessee father and stepmother have been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of a 5-year-old boy.
The Tennessean reports 39-year-old Phillip Jerome Gardner and 42-year-old Latonia Gardner were arrested and indicted Monday and booked into the Metro Nashville jail Tuesday in connection with the man’s son’s Dec. 7 death.
A Goodlettsville police report says authorities responding to Latonia Gardner’s report of her stepson not breathing found the boy unresponsive in a bathroom. The stepmother told police the boy woke up ill and she guided him to the bathroom to vomit, at which point he fell unconscious.
The boy died at a hospital. The cause of death hasn’t been released.
The Gardners were initially arrested in December on aggravated assault charges.
It’s unclear if they have lawyers.