Reporting for NEWS TEAM ONE: West.

A Washington man is currently in jail on suspicion of killing his son. 38-year-old Thomas Everett Holland was arrested Thursday, May 15 by Prince George’s County Police Department. He faces charges of first degree child abuse as well as manslaughter for the death of his son.

3-year-old Jayson Maurice Holland passed away January 26, only minutes after his father brought him to the United Medical Center in Southeast Washington. He claimed he found his son “unresponsive” in the living room. Autopsy and toxicology reports released in May led to Holland’s arrest, as the medical examiner found acetaminophen, codeine, and cocaine in the child’s system. His death was then ruled to be a homicide.

Thomas Everett Holland

“Those results are showing there was such a concentration of [the] four drugs that our detectives and medical examiners believe there is no chance this child could have accidentally ingested them,” said Lt. William Alexander, a spokesman for Prince George’s County Police.

Jayson’s mother, Shinee Hicks, had been pursuing child support from Holland since the boy was only months old. He claimed he was not the boy’s father. At one point, Holland owed up to $6,000 in back child support, and was ordered to pay that debt, and continue with monthly payments. Holland’s visits were sporadic, sometimes not showing up for weeks at a time. But the weekend of January 26th, he showed up for his visit. According to Hicks’ brother, Davon Hicks, Holland did not even attend the toddler’s funeral.

“Investigators now believe this could not have been an accident — there was no way a three-year-old child could ingest that amount of acetaminophen and cocaine,” said PGPD spokesperson, Julie Parker.

Holland is currently in the custody of the Department of Corrections. There is no bond, and no court date has been set yet. We will keep you informed as the case proceeds.

What do you think the motive was for killing this little boy? Do you think the charges are appropriate, or should they be harsher?