Smith Township man charged with killing infant son
A Smith Township father has been charged with homicide in the death of his 6-month-old son nearly two months ago after the child suffered severe head injuries.
Joshua Wayne George, 30, was arrested Friday afternoon and arraigned on numerous felony charges related to the death of Oliver George in early January.
Smith Township police said they were called to a Colony Road home on Dec. 30 after the infant’s grandparents, who were watching the boy that day, noticed he was acting strange and later began vomiting as his arms and legs turned purple, according to court documents.
The boy was initially taken to Weirton Medical Center in West Virginia, but then flown by medical helicopter the following day to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he was treated for numerous head injuries. Doctors told investigators they believed the various injuries indicated child abuse, police said.
Oliver died of his injuries Jan. 3, and an autopsy revealed the boy’s cause of death was blunt force trauma to his head. His death was ruled a homicide by the Allegheny County medical examiner’s office.
A friend of Joshua George told investigators that while the two men were working on a vehicle Dec. 28 and 29, George mentioned his son “was giving him trouble the night before” and that he allegedly “told Oliver he was going to shake him,” according to court documents.
Police said Joshua George was the only person with the boy at their home at 46 Francis Road near Burgettstown when the injuries occurred. He later dropped the baby off at the Colony Road residence where the grandparents noticed the child was having medical issues.
District Attorney Jason Walsh said the boy’s mother was not home when the child’s injuries occurred, and neither she nor the grandparents are suspected of any wrongdoing. He said interviews over the last two months led them to charging George.
George was arrested Friday afternoon at a relative’s house in South Strabane Township, Walsh said.
In addition to the homicide charge, George also faces three felony counts of aggravated assault and one count of child endangerment. George was arraigned at the Washington County Courthouse by President Judge John DiSalle, and he is being held at the Washington County jail without bond.