A Clark County judge has reduced bail from $750,000 to $600,000 for a Vancouver man accused of killing his infant son by throwing him several feet onto a changing table because the baby was fussy.
David M. Redmond, 24, has been in the Clark County Jail since his arrest on Oct. 19.
Superior Court Judge David Gregerson said his decision was based on the fact that the allegations involve Redmond’s child and not a random member of the public, said Senior Deputy Prosecutor Camara Banfield. Redmond also doesn’t have any violent criminal history. He was convicted of criminal mischief in Oregon five years ago but has no other criminal history, according to prosecutors.
Redmond pleaded not guilty Oct. 23 to a charge of first-degree murder.
Redmond’s attorney, Gregg Schile, was not present at Redmond’s first court appearance and requested a follow-up hearing where he could challenge the amount of Redmond’s bail. He argued for a bail amount of between $100,000 and $200,000, Banfield said.
Schile did not return a phone call Tuesday seeking comment on whether Redmond would be able to post the new bail amount. He remained in the Clark County Jail as of Tuesday evening.
Redmond, 24, said he had just returned to the family’s Maplewood neighborhood home from work on Oct. 15 when he threw 1-month-old Everett Redmond because the infant was fussy, according to a court affidavit by Vancouver police Detective Jason Hafer.
In letters to the court, Everett Redmond’s maternal relatives asked Gregerson not to reduce the bail amount.
“Everett has lost the freedom to be among us, and it would be unthinkable that the man who has taken his life would be granted the opportunity to walk around free and enjoy seeing the sun, being with family and just enjoy everyday life,” wrote Joseph Cathey, Everett Redmond’s grandfather. “I urge you to consider the level of anger and violence that this man has taken out on my grandson and realize that it would be an injustice to allow him his freedom.”
Redmond confessed that he lifted the infant over his head and threw him from a bed onto a changing table, a distance of 7 to 9 feet, Deputy Prosecutor Patrick Robinson has said. The baby weighed about 6 pounds, Robinson said.
His wife, Ashley Redmond, was away from home at the time.
When the infant became unresponsive later that night, Redmond woke up his wife and told her that Everett wasn’t breathing well, Hafer wrote.
Ashley Redmond started CPR, while David Redmond called 911.
Everett Redmond was taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center, then transferred to Randall Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland, where he died.
David Redmond allegedly confessed that he had abused his son at other times during the infant’s brief life. He said he forced the baby’s mouth shut at the jaw to try to stop him from crying, squeezed him, threw him onto the bed and threw him against a couch, causing the baby to fall onto the floor, according to court documents. He also spanked the baby when the infant was 1 week old, court documents say.
According to court documents, prosecutors have filed a first-degree murder charge with two aggravating circumstances — having knowledge that the victim was particularly vulnerable and committing the crime as part of an ongoing pattern of physical abuse over a prolonged period of time. If convicted with one or both of the aggravating circumstances, a judge could sentence David Redmond to an amount of time that is greater than the state’s standard sentencing range.
