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Inset: Mark R. Forster (Ramsey County Jail). Background: The home where Forster lived when he killed his newborn son last year (Google Maps).
A Minnesota father has been sentenced to nearly 11 years in prison for the tragic death of his newborn son. Mark Russell Forster, 40, was convicted of fatally beating his infant, citing that he was “blackout drunk” and unable to recall the incident.
On Monday, Judge Sophia Y. Vuelo of the Ramsey County District Court handed down a sentence of 128 months, or just under 11 years, to Forster. This sentence follows Forster’s admission of guilt in the death of his son, Jackson Dallas Forster, according to court documents.
Forster entered a Norgaard plea for second-degree murder without intent committed during a felony. This plea, unique to Minnesota law, allows defendants who claim memory loss of the crime to acknowledge the state’s case is strong enough to secure a conviction.
As part of the sentencing, Forster received credit for 460 days he has already spent in custody.
The tragic events unfolded on January 31, 2024, when officers from the White Bear Lake Police Department were called to St. John’s Hospital in Maplewood. There, an 8-week-old baby had been admitted with multiple brain bleeds, injuries consistent with child abuse. The infant, brought in by his mother, was in distress, seizing, and turning blue.
The victim was soon transferred to Masonic Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis for more specialized care.
At the hospital, Forster told the admitting physician that he may have “dropped [Jackson] or done something,” adding that he “was not in his right state of mind last night” when caring for the boy.
Jackson died less than two months after being admitted to the hospital. The cause of death was complications due to blunt force trauma to the head.
Investigators soon put together a timeline of events leading up to Jackson’s injuries.
Forster had worked the previous evening and returned to the house at about 1 a.m., which was part of his regular schedule, according to a probable cause affidavit. The victim woke up at around 2:30 a.m., which was also typical, and Forster took over the child care duties so Jackson’s mom could go to sleep.
The mother woke up at about 6 a.m. to get herself ready for work and her daughter ready for school. She said she remembered Jackson seemed to be waking up as she was exiting the house at about 7 a.m., leaving Forster to care for Jackson. She did not hear from him throughout the day.
When she returned home from work at about 1:30 p.m., she said Jackson was sleeping in a chair with Forster, who said he had just finished feeding the boy. Jackson then took “a longer nap than usual,” waking up at 3:30 p.m. and spitting up. He then fell back asleep for another 90 minutes, but this time he woke up “crying a different cry.”
“She made a bottle and [Jackson] would not take it,” the affidavit said. “He then started arching his back. One of his arms was ‘all tensed up’ and straight down to his side. His other arm was flailing. His face twitched and he had a spasm in one leg. She contacted Forster who came home. They called a nurse line and they were instructed to bring [Jackson] to the emergency room.”
The mother said Forster had been a “supportive partner and father” but had been “drinking too much.”
Forster told police that when he arrived home from work at 1 a.m., he “kinda delved into liquor a little bit.” He said he remembered putting Jackson to bed but “did not remember how or when he went to bed,” adding that he “drank more than typical that morning.”
From the document:
He said that he had “half of a fifth” of hard liquor after he got home from work that early morning. He drank approximately five drinks starting at 0100 hours. He remembered waking up at 0600 hours to feed [Jackson]. He stated [Jackson] was “fine, fussy whatever.” He put [Jackson] in his swing. [Jackson] slept until 1000 hours when he woke up to feed. He was “just a little bit fussy.” He took 5 oz. and went back to sleep. At some point they moved to the bed because that is where they were when Forster woke up. He said he must have grabbed him and brought him to bed but he did not remember doing that.
Forster noted that he had been “having a lot of stress at work” and said he also smoked “a packed bowl of marijuana when he arrived home.”
When Jackson’s mother confronted Forster about Jackson’s injuries, she said he admitted he “may have done something to their son, but he did not remember because he had been drinking.” He further admitted to police that he “could not rule himself out as the cause” of his son’s fatal injuries.
A search of Forster’s phone showed he sent a text message to Jackson’s mother blaming himself for their son’s injuries.
“Yea. I’m just really upset with myself because I got so blackout drunk last night I don’t remember anything. This is all my fault,” he wrote.