A West Virginia man has pleaded guilty in connection with the 2024 death of a 3-month-old baby.
John Michael Tames admitted guilt to charges of second-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death on Thursday, Dec. 18, according to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department.
Court records previously reported by WCHS state that Tames was babysitting the infant, Everly, when she suffered severe injuries, including brain hemorrhaging and multiple skeletal fractures.
Authorities were dispatched to Tames’ home on Jan. 5, 2024, after receiving a report that an infant was in cardiac arrest, according to the outlet. Everly was transported to a hospital in Morgantown, where she died about a month later.
Tames was initially charged with child abuse following the incident. Those charges were upgraded in February after the infant succumbed to her injuries, WTAP and WSAZ reported.
According to investigators, Tames told police he had swung the child back and forth while feeling frustrated. He later changed his account, stating that the infant’s head struck the floor, possibly with enough force to fracture her skull.
Tames is scheduled to be sentenced in Jackson County Circuit Court on Feb. 6, 2026, according to the sheriff’s department. He faces a potential sentence ranging from 15 years to life in prison, WCHS reported.
Jackson County Sheriff Ross Mellinger described the abuse as “nothing short of brutal,” adding that he hopes the judge imposes the maximum possible punishment.
