Better Get Your Baby Before the Alligators Do

Summary: Enraged when his girlfriend ended their relationship and told him their 9-month-old son, Charles Jr. might not be his, Charles Tyson slammed the baby onto a dirt road, swung him head first onto a car hood, and then tossed him off a bridge into a canal. He told the baby's mother "You better get your baby before the alligators do." Charles Edward Tyson Jr. died from his injuries.

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Delray Beach, Florida: In April 2006, Charles Tyson, 20, and his girlfriend, Shameka Mosley, 17, drove home from the hospital with their 9-month-old son, Charles Edward, Jr. when the two began arguing.

Baby Charles was treated for diarrhea at the hospital. He slept peacefully until Shameka and Charles began arguing. He woke up and began to cry.

Charles and Shameka continued to argue. He accused Shameka of cheating on him. She responded by telling him the relationship was over "for good," and that Charles Jr. might not be his son.

Tyson flew into a rage. He grabbed Charles Jr. from his car seat and tossed the baby out of the car window. He landed face-first onto the dirt road.

Tyson exited the vehicle, grabbed Charles Jr. by the leg, and, “in a swinging motion,” slammed him head-first onto the hood, the force leaving a dent in the car. Tyson grabbed the baby, jumped into the driver’s seat, and sped off in the car.

He stopped at a bridge and tossed Charles Jr. into the canal. He then went back to Mosley and announced that he tossed the baby into the canal, telling her, “You better get your baby before the alligators do.”

Police found the baby floating in the canal and attempted to revive him. He died a short time later at a Delray Beach hospital.

Tyson should not have been around Mosely or his son. In December 2005, Mosely obtained a restraining order against him after a violent encounter.

Police charged Tyson with first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, child endangerment, and violating a restraining order.  Prosecutors sought the death penalty in the case.

In 2008, a 22-year-old Tyson pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and aggravated child abuse. He was given a 40-year prison sentence and 10 years of probation after release.

The sentence was largely impacted by  Mosley and her mother, Joanne Mosley, who opposed the death penalty altogether and pleaded with the judge for a sentence less than life.

Shameka Mosley wrote a statement that her mother read aloud at Mosley’s trial, stating in part, “I just want to say that I know Charles loved his son, Charles Jr. Being a Christian, I forgave him, but I won’t forget.”

Records showed Tyson and Mosley had written letters to one another in the two years he had been incarcerated. Tyson never apologized or showed remorse for killing Charles Jr. however, he expressed his desire to reconnect with Mosley in 40 years when he was again a free man.

At Charles Jr.'s funeral service, Shameka's aunt, Janet Clark, read a letter written by Shameka. It read, in part, "Mommy loves you. ... Daddy loves you, too. He just has a problem. ... Forgive your father, please, son. He doesn't know what's wrong."

Sources:

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2006/04/28/police-say-father-tossed-baby-in-canal/

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2008/02/26/plea-deal-set-in-infants-death-2/

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/baby-thrown-in-florida-canal/