The Berrien County Prosecutor’s Office is praising a decision by the Michigan Court of Appeals this week that upholds the second-degree murder conviction of a St. Joseph man in the death of his 8-year-old son.
The boy weighed just 31 pounds when his body was found by police in May in 2022. He’d been pulled from a learning center by his parents prior to his death.
The boy’s father, Brian Morrow, pleaded no contest in the case and was sentenced to 22 to 50 years in prison but later appealed arguing that a defendant must perform an affirmative action to be guilty of second-degree murder. The state court disagrees, saying in its decision this week, “Although homicide by a defendant’s omission to perform a legal duty is often charged as manslaughter, it may rise to the level of murder in certain circumstances.”
In a statement, the Berrien County Prosecutor’s Office says the “decision reaffirms an essential principle: when caregivers knowingly and intentionally fail to provide a child with basic necessities, and that failure results in death, Michigan law holds them fully accountable.” It adds the case “represents the tragic reality of child neglect our community,” and that the conviction brings a measure of justice to the victim.
Also convicted in the case, and sentenced to 25 years, was the child’s mother, Mia Morrow.
