Published: November 03, 2006 11:08 pm      

Child abuse suspect held without bail

CRIME: Michael Wilkins describes actions to investigators

Michael Wilkins expressed remorse and told Falls Police detectives he never meant to hurt his 3-month-old son.

Still, Marquez Wilkins remains in the intensive care unit at Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Buffalo suffering from injuries that include five fractured ribs, a lacerated liver, retinal hemorrhaging and bleeding on his brain.

Friday, Wilkins was arraigned in City Court on charges of first-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a minor. The Florida native pleaded not guilty to the charges and was jailed, without bail, by Judge Angelo Morinello after cops said Wilkins might flee the area if he was released.

Wilkins, 21, currently lists an address as 5301⁄2 Sixth St., where he has reportedly lived since moving to the Falls in June, from Deltona, Fla. Police said he lived at that address with his son and girlfriend.

Detectives said they were first alerted to Marquez’s condition after he was brought by Wilkins and his girlfriend to the emergency room at Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center early Tuesday afternoon. Wilkins told investigators the child appeared to be ill when he was put down for a nap.

“I put him down on his back and noticed that he was not breathing normally,” Wilkins told detectives. “I picked him up and he went limp. He wouldn’t respond to anything.”

After the infant was transferred to Children’s Hospital, police and child protection caseworkers confront the parents about their son’s injuries. Wilkins told them he had tripped over a video game controller on Monday and the device had struck Marquez in the head.

He said the baby bled a little bit and cried, but then seemed all right. Neither the investigators nor the caseworkers were buying that explanation.

In a later statement, Wilkins admitted he had no good reason for why his son was so badly hurt.

“I told the detectives that I had no explanation for these injuries, but that I was trying to be a good dad and would never hurt my son,” Wilkins said. “I love my family and would never intentionally hurt them.”

On Thursday, when another Child Protective Services caseworker questioned Wilkins and his girlfriend, he said he broke down, crying, and told her that he needed to tell her about something that had happened last Saturday.

“I was sitting on the couch. When I got up to go to the bathroom, I tripped over the baby,” Wilkins said. “Marquez moved about five inches and started to cry. I was wearing my Timberland boots when this happened. My foot hit him pretty hard in the stomach.”

Detectives told Wilkins they didn’t believe his story and he gave them a third explanation.

“I was afraid to tell the truth, because I have been good for a year and did not want to go to jail,” Wilkins said.

Wilkins said Marquez had been “fussing” last Saturday afternoon and he was trying to clean the apartment.

“I picked up Marquez in frustration, around the waist, and squeezed him with both hands, really hard,” Wilkins said. “My body was shaking and I shook him as I said, ‘Please stop.’ I kept telling (Marquez) to calm down, asking him what was wrong. I was really frustrated and he would not stop crying.”

In his statement to police, Wilkins said he “threw” the baby down in his crib and went outside to smoke a cigarette. When he returned the child was “calm.”

After that, Wilkins said he took the child in the living room and tripped over him.

“I really felt bad because this was an accident and I had already felt bad for squeezing him earlier.”

Wilkins said he then accidentally kicked the game controller into the baby on Monday.

“I need parenting classes, because I really want to be a good father. I don’t want to get frustrated with the baby,’ he told detectives. “I kept thinking to myself when I heard about the injuries to (Marquez), why was I that stupid to do that? Why was I so careless for the other injuries? Why did I lose my patience with him? He is just a baby.”