Man Charged in 1-Year-Old’s Death in Fort Smith

Man Charged in 1-Year-Old's Death in Fort Smith (1)

FORT SMITH, AR (CSU) – In Fort Smith, a man was arrested on suspicion of murdering a one-year-old kid.

Officers were sent to an apartment on North 50th Street at 8:20 a.m. on Jan. 20, 2022, to react to a youngster who was not breathing, according to a redacted police report.

Officers came and discovered Jared Ball, along with a one-year-old, a three-year-old, and a five-year-old. The one-year-old was said to be in “severe anguish,” according to the report. At 9:09 a.m., the kid was brought to Mercy Hospital and declared dead.

According to the report, the child’s ribs had injuries consistent with vigorous shaking on January 19. The medical examiner determined that the youngster died as a result of various injuries sustained in a murder.

According to the medical examiner, the youngster died as a result of “at least one forceful hit to the front of the chest causing a laceration of the heart and bleeding into the pericardial sac.”

The medical examiner told investigators that the child’s heart damage could not have been caused by a fall or by rolling off of the bed and hitting a bedside table. He further claimed that the injuries could not have been inflicted by a five-year-old youngster.

At this time, no other information concerning the child’s death has been released, but Ball has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

Officers discovered almost 40 grams of probable Kratom, commonly known as mitragynine, in the kitchen cabinet of the apartment Ball shared with his girlfriend and children during the death investigation. Ball’s girlfriend told detectives that he is a drug addict who is abusive to her.

Investigators stated they learned Ball had physically harmed his girlfriend three times in the previous several months after speaking with her, the most recent instance being roughly seven weeks ago. She said Ball hit her in the rib cage, giving her discomfort for more than a month. He has also choked her and threatened to murder her in the past, she claims.

Along with the murder accusation, Ball is charged with third-degree domestic abuse, aggravated attack on a family or household member, mitragynine possession, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

He is being detained on a $500,000 cash bond at the moment.

Follow us on Twitter

Also, Read Families Call for Justice After 3 Women Killed in Violent Crimes in Recent Days

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top
Scroll to Top