Father charged with homicide by child abuse after disabled 5-year-old son dies

LANCASTER COUNTY, SC (WBTV) - A father in Lancaster County is charged with homicide by child abuse in the death of his 5-year-old son.

Robert Jordan, 47, was arrested on October 13 on the charge. Deputies say Jordan's son, La'Marion Jordan, died on September 4 at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.

A day after La'Marion died, investigators went to Robert Jordan's home to speak with him. The father told them that La'Marion, who had a disability, fell out of his wheelchair and hit his head on the floor early in the morning the day before.

Jordan then drove his son to Springs Memorial Hospital, but he was transferred by air to CMC in Charlotte, where he died that afternoon.

An autopsy determined the child died from a blunt force injury to his head.

Investigators interviewed witnesses who know the Jordan family, reviewed the child's medical records and the autopsy report, and consulted with a medical expert before interviewing the father again on October 13, when he was taken into custody.

"Things are not always as they appear and do not always occur as they are explained," said Sheriff Barry Faile. "The investigators on this case were persistent and dug deep into the facts to get to the truth about the tragic death of this child.  We appreciate the expertise and assistance of SLED in this investigation."

Jordan's family is full of questions. They say he is a loving father, who had fostered the 5-year-old and later adopted him as his own son.

"When I get upset, I can't catch my breath," said Robert Jordan's mother, Rose Mae Jackson. She says she's torn to pieces after losing her special needs grandson.

Now she's learning her own son is accused of throwing the child down a hallway, casing blunt force trauma to the 5-year-old who suffers from cerebral palsy.

"He couldn't walk, he couldn't sit by himself. He was in a wheelchair, he couldn't even feed himself, we had to feed him," Jackson said. "When they told him to come to the police station, I said, 'ain't no way in the world junior did nothing to that baby, not the way he loves kids,'" Jackson said.

Neighbors heard about the child's death last month, but were shocked to learn what Jordan is accused of doing. One woman asked not to be identified.

"As a parent, I can't imagine somebody taking a 5-year-old child and doing that. A defenseless child at that," she said.

Jackson said she can't imagine it either, and despite the charge against her son, she remains in his corner.

"We stick together. Me and my husband honey, we pray all the every night, every night and I pray to Lord he get out of this here," said Jackson.

Jackson said two new babysitters had also cared for the child prior to the incident.

The case remains under investigation.

Anyone with information about the case should call the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office at 803-283-3388, or Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC.

Copyright 2015 WBTV. All rights reserved.