17-year-old Carrollton father charged with murder in death of infant son

A 17-year-old from Carrollton has been charged with murder in the Aug. 9 death of his infant son, according to a news release from Carrollton Police.

Caleb Brown was arrested and charged Tuesday morning.

Police said Brown was angry at the baby’s mother, also 17, for keeping the baby and was concerned about having to pay child support.

Brown told police that while he was alone with 3-week-old Emerson Ziesmer on Aug. 9 he squeezed the child and repeatedly threw him into the air, and the baby eventually hit the ceiling fan, according to the news release.

Brown and the baby’s mother brought the infant to the emergency room at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Plano that day. The mother noticed the baby had become pale and found significant bruising on his abdomen, according to the release.

The newborn was pronounced dead after being transferred to Children’s Medical Center of Dallas.

An autopsy revealed Emerson suffered multiple displaced ribs and a lacerated liver, according to the release.

Brown is being held at the Denton County Jail. Bail had not been set as of Tuesday afternoon.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Brown and the baby’s mother were no longer in a relationship when they discovered she was pregnant. In a search of cell phones and social media records, investigators said they learned Brown was upset at the mother for not aborting the baby or putting him up for adoption.