Welcome to Arrest Stories. A thirty-year-old Columbus mother faces felonious assault charges after allegedly throwing her nine-month-old son fifteen feet across a room, leaving the infant in critical condition and fighting for his life on life support. Here's what may have happened.
On Wednesday evening, emergency responders rushed to an apartment on the nine hundred block of North Fourth Street in Columbus's Italian Village neighborhood after receiving a desperate nine-one-one call. "My nine-month-old isn't breathing," the caller reported. What medics discovered at approximately five o'clock that evening would shock even seasoned first responders.
Billie Jo Tustin allegedly threw her infant son approximately fifteen feet across the room, causing him to land directly on his head on the hard floor. According to police reports, the baby was found unresponsive and immediately transported to Nationwide Children's Hospital, where he remains in critical condition on life support.
During questioning, Tustin made disturbing admissions to investigators. She reportedly confessed to throwing the baby multiple times over shorter distances and admitted to spanking and slapping the infant across the face when she became frustrated. A three-year-old daughter was present in the home during the alleged assault but thankfully remained unharmed.
Franklin County Children Services had already been involved with the family regarding custody issues surrounding the three-year-old. Officials described the alleged abuse as "appalling and heartbreaking." The agency stated, "We will work with police and prosecutors as they hold accountable a parent who allegedly chose to harm their defenseless child."
One investigator expressed the gravity of the situation, saying, "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."
A neighbor reflected on the shocking nature of the allegations, stating they couldn't imagine what the three-year-old may have previously endured.
Tustin is being held without bond and was scheduled for arraignment on Thursday, September nineteenth.
All suspects presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Do not take this report as factual, always verify facts. Thanks for watching Arrest Stories.