Kameron Gammage
A 23-year-old father in Texas was sentenced to spend the rest of life behind bars after admitting to beating his infant son to death months ago.
District Court Judge Denn Whalen on Thursday sentenced Kameron Gammage to life in prison plus 20 years for killing 7-month-old Logan Gammage, records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
Gammage appeared Thursday in the state’s 70th District Court where he formally pleaded guilty to one count each of murder of an individual under 10 years of age and injury to a child. A part of the plea agreement reached between Gammage’s attorney from the public defender’s office and prosecutors with the Ector County District Attorney’s Office, Gammage is required to serve the sentences consecutively, Midland ABC affiliate KMID reported.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, Gammage was initially arrested back in July along with Logan’s mother, 18-year-old Leyla Grace Pierson, who was charged with one count of criminal negligence injury to a child, a state jail felony punishable by up to two years in prison.
Ector County grand juries returned true bill of indictment against both parents earlier this month, records show.
According to a probable cause arrest affidavit from the Odessa Police Department, officers on July 12, 2022 at approximately 12:52 p.m. responded to an emergency 911 call regarding an infant who was not breathing at the Brady Station Apartment Complex located in the 4200 block of E 52nd Street.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they found the couple’s son unresponsive inside of the apartment. The baby appeared to have visible injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
“The deceased infant had heavy bruising swelling to the left side of his face and head,” police wrote in the affidavit. “There were also multiple smaller bruises along the top of the deceased infant’s cranium.”
Pierson told investigators that she fed the baby at approximately 5 a.m. that morning then fell back asleep. She awoke at approximately noon and found the child not breathing. She then “frantically” attempted to wake Gammage but said he “seemed uncaring” and “took several minutes to get up and help.” When he finally approached her to help, Pierson said Gammage still “seemed uncaring.”
After Gammage called 911, Pierson said that he “became apologetic toward her and told her he hoped she wasn’t mad at him.” Pierson allegedly told investigators that Gammage “has extreme anger issues and has recently killed several dogs by strangulation,” police wrote in the affidavit.
The affidavit further noted that Gammage appeared apathetic at the scene after his son’s death, saying he “remained unemotional and seemed to lack care about the incident throughout contact.”
In a follow-up interview at the station, Gammage allegedly told investigators that he last saw his son alive between 5:30 a.m. and 6 a.m. that morning before he went back to sleep. When police asked Gammage about the bruises on the infant’s head, Gammage allegedly said the injury came from “the infant hitting his head on a hard portion of the interior of the crib.”
“Upon further interview with [Gammage], he admitted that he does have extreme anger issues and has been dealing with a lot of stress lately, including the infant frequently crying,” police wrote in the affidavit. “[Gammage] admitted that he recently strangled two dogs to death and attempted to dispose of their bodies to avoid getting in trouble. ”
Gammage further admitted that three days prior to his son’s death, on the evening of July 9, he woke up to his son crying at approximately 10 p.m. He allegedly went to go play with the child and “began tossing the infant in the air then catching him,” the affidavit states, adding that Gammage was “frustrated” that the infant “would not stop crying.”
“[Gammage] claimed he ‘accidentally’ dropped the infant after about the 4th toss, which caused the infant to land on his left side. [Gammage] reported the infant hit the floor ‘hard’ when he landed,” the affidavit states. “[Gammage] reported the bruising and swelling on the infant’s face and head began after that, but he didn’t want to tell [Pierson] in fear of getting in trouble. [Gammage] reported the infant began acting unusual over the next couple of days, and when he saw the infant deceased this morning, his initial thought was something like he killed his kid.”
Pierson allegedly admitted that she noticed the injuries to her son and that the baby became more “fussy” in the days that followed, but said she did not seek medical attention because she thought the boy was just teething.
In addition to the charges in connection with his son’s death, Gammage was also charged with one count of sexual assault against a child.
According to a report from Odessa CBS affiliate KOSA-TV, a grand jury in Andrews County on May 19 indicted Gammage on the sexual assault charge and a warrant for his arrest was issued. The offense in question reportedly involved a 15-year-old victim and took place between 2019 and 2020.
Pierson is currently scheduled to appear before Judge Whalen for an arraignment hearing on Oct. 10, records show.
[image via Odessa Police Department]