Posted on 06/12/2005 10:49:39 AM PDT by SmithL
A former Seymour man who was charged with murdering the 3-year-old son of his girlfriend killed himself in his Florida jail cell Saturday, authorities said.
Charles Edward Reed, 28, of Ocala, Fla., was charged about 10 p.m. Friday with first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse by the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
Saturday afternoon around 1:25 p.m., a Marion County corrections officer discovered Reed had hung himself in his cell, according to Marion County Sheriff's Office spokesman Capt. Dennis Strow.
He was pronounced dead at the scene, Strow said.
The incident began about 3:35 a.m. Friday when deputies were called to an unresponsive child at a residence in Ocala, according to Strow.
The deputy who responded found Matthew Lynne May unresponsive lying on the couch. He performed CPR until emergency medical personnel arrived.
Matthew was taken to a nearby hospital.
The initial investigation determined the child's mother, Crystal, had left Matthew with Reed while she worked.
She discovered her son unresponsive when she returned home, Strow said.
"The child had obvious trauma to his body," said a statement released by the sheriff's office.
Joe May, who identified himself to the News Sentinel as Matthew's uncle, said he spoke to the lead investigator several times in the past 48 hours.
He was told the 6-foot-1, 270-pound Reed had scalded Matthew all over his body and then beat him.
"He said there was great trauma to his body," Joe May said.
Joe May said Matthew's mother had left East Tennessee in the past month or so and had traveled around the country with Reed and her son before the three recently settled in Florida.
Strow said Reed had lived at his current Ocala address for approximately two weeks.
He said Marion County authorities initially arrested Reed on a violation of probation charge out of Tennessee before the investigation led to the murder and abuse charges.
Reed committed suicide after deputies took special care with the murder suspect.
Due to the nature of the charge, he was placed in protective custody and checked on every 30 minutes, Strow said.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is handling the investigation into Reed's death at the request of Marion County Sheriff Ed Dean, Strow said.
Joe May said news of Reed's death was bittersweet.
"I don't feel a bit better," he said. "If the inmates would have beat his eyes out, maybe that would have done it, but I don't feel a bit better."
Joe May said Reed had lived in Seymour. Matthew's father, Larry May, lives in Anderson County.
Strow said the investigation into the child's death continues.
Leftover rope from the inmate before?
Yes and in this case, it will spare a judge and jury from having to hear all the horrid details of this poor little kids' life and death.
perhaps looonngg shoelaces should be issued to more of these thugs...
Maybe this sentence from the article explains it:
Reed committed suicide after deputies took special care with the murder suspect.
And then here's my favorite quote:
Joe May said news of Reed's death was bittersweet. "I don't feel a bit better," he said. "If the inmates would have beat his eyes out, maybe that would have done it, but I don't feel a bit better."
My thought is that he hanged himself (even if self-implemented). If he'd just hung himself, there wouldn't be much of a story--they'd just get him down.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.