A trial is underway for one of three relatives accused of abusing a 5-year-old West Virginia boy who died last March with extensive injuries.
According to WBOY, Harrison County prosecutors said on Monday during opening statements that text messages discussed using makeup to hide injuries on Keaton Boggs and not taking him to the doctor. Currently standing trial is Boggs’ uncle, Peter Wodzinski, 32, who is charged with the death of a child by parent, guardian, or custodian by child abuse.
The deceased boy’s aunt and grandmother, Michelle Boggs, 49, and Chasity Wodzinski, 29, are facing the same charges. Last month, a judge ruled that the three suspects will be prosecuted in separate trials.
Keaton Boggs reportedly lived with Peter Wodzinski, Michelle Boggs, and Chasity Wodzinski, for nine months after the boy’s father died in June 2019.
Keaton Boggs died on March 20, two days after Michelle Boggs and Chasity Wodzinski took him to the hospital. Doctors determined the brain injuries he suffered were irreversible. His death was ultimately ruled a homicide.
Prosecutors said Keaton Boggs’ injuries were in various stages of healing. He reportedly sustained bleeding on his brain and to his eyes, bruising all over his body, and ear trauma. He allegedly also had a laceration to his penile shaft and injuries to his testicles and inner thigh.
Peter Wodzinski allegedly told police that the injuries to the 5-year-old’s scrotum were self-inflicted. Prosecutors said four out of five doctor’s appointments were canceled in a nine-month span, presumably to hide the boy’s injuries, according to WBOY.
University Hospital Center Dr. Stewart Godwin testified on Monday that Boggs’ injuries were the result of child abuse. The physician also said this was the worst child abuse case he has ever encountered, the news outlet reported.
Michelle Boggs and Chasity Wodzinski’s trials are scheduled to begin on April 19 and March 29, respectively.
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[Featured image: Keaton Boggs/Facebook]
