Share and Follow
Justin Golden, 20, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter of a child in the death of his son Pablo Kye Golden.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Editor’s Note: The following content may be disturbing to some readers.
A father pleaded guilty in Duval County court Wednesday to a charge related to the death of his 8-month-old son, who was run over and killed in January.
Justin Golden, 20, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter of a child in the death of his son Pablo Kye Golden. Golden originally pleaded not guilty to the charge, as well as vehicular homicide on Feb. 18.
However, state prosecutors dropped his vehicular homicide charge as part of the negotiated plea.
Judge London Kite accepted the plea and set a sentencing date of Nov. 13. Golden faces a maximum prison sentence of 30 years.
What happened?
On the morning of Jan. 25, police say Golden was driving near the intersection of McDuff and Lenox avenues when he got into an altercation with a woman in the passenger seat. 8-month-old Pablo was also in the vehicle at the time.
Police say the car came to a stop at the intersection, Golden opened the car door and placed the child on the ground. As Golden drove away, the vehicle ran Pablo over.
First responders took Pablo to Wolfson’s Children’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
A witness, who was driving directly behind Golden at the time of the incident, followed Golden while on the phone with 911, Golden’s arrest report states.
The 911 operator notified nearby police officers of Golden’s location, and officers conducted a traffic stop near Stockton Street on his vehicle. He was ultimately detained.
During an interview with police, Golden said he got into a verbal fight with Pablo’s mother, who said she wanted to get out of the vehicle.
“Mr. Golden stated he did not want to be responsible for the child, nor accused of anything with the child,” Golden’s arrest report states.
Pablo’s mother was also interviewed by police. She told investigators she got into an argument with Golden over baby wipes and money, according to an arrest report. The woman said she did not move the child from his car seat and began walking away from the vehicle in an effort to stop the altercation.
She told investigators she heard screaming and turned around and noticed the child in the road and Golden’s vehicle gone.