Boy's Thumb-Sucking Caused His Murder

A childhood habit may have been the cause of 4 year-old Elijah Simpson's death. It is alleged that Christopher Montgomery, a 23 year-old from Indianapolis, Indiana, killed his girlfriend's child after becoming angry when the boy began sucking his thumb.

ELIJAH'S FATE

Elijah Simpson's mother, 24 year-old Courtney Simpson arrived on Friday (March 30^th) afternoon at the emergency room of the Community Hospital East. She claimed that upon returning home, she discovered the child "unresponsive." However, hospital staff revealed that Elijah was already dead upon being brought to the ER.

Further examination of the 4 year-old revealed marks on his ankles and wrists, which indicated that the child was restrained in some way. Courtney Simpson was questioned about the marks. Per Detective Marcus Kennedy, the mother responded that the child's 5 year-old brother had created the indentations by attempting to tie up his brother with shoestrings.

But that explanation did not sit well with officials who discovered the cause of Elijah's death through autopsy results. Per the medical reports, the child's death was due to a fractured skull.

THE DREADFUL STORY

Once the autopsy's findings were released, Courtney Simpson ultimately revealed that her boyfriend, Christopher Montgomery was responsible for the blow which led to Elijah's death by admitting that Montgomery had inflicted the blow on Friday morning around 6 a.m.

Per her account, Montgomery grew angry upon seeing the 4 year-old sucking his thumb. He then used the drawstrings of a hooded sweatshirt to hog-tie the child. No details have been released on what was actually used to inflict the trauma to Ellijah's head. However, officials have likened the impact to the boy hitting his head in a 30-foot fall.

Police have also revealed that at least eight hours passed before Elijah was brought to the hospital on Friday afternoon. Detective Marcus Kennedy claims that the child had been suffering abuse at the hands of Montgomery for more than a month; apparently, Montgomery had punched and tied up the child many times, as there were several visible scars on the boy's body.

Montgomery, Simpson, and her two sons lived in an extended stay motel on Post Drive in Indianapolis. Upon arriving at the emergency room on Friday, Montgomery was arrested by police. He had previous warrants out for his arrest for probation violation after a 2002 robbery conviction.

Elijah's 5 year-old brother has been taken into Child Protective Services. The children's mother, who had worked as an exotic dancer, has been arrested for neglect of a dependant. She is currently pregnant with Christopher Montgomery's child.