A couple accused of beating and starving their son were found guilty yesterday in Baltimore County Circuit Court of second-degree murder and first-degree child abuse.
John J. Griffin and Susan J. Griffin, both 39, will be sentenced March 27 for their roles in the death of the boy, Andrew Patrick Griffin, who was almost 3 when his father took the unresponsive child to a Towson emergency room. Hospital staff described the boy's condition as "shocking."
Each of the charges calls for a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. Robin S. Coffin, the lead prosecutor in the case, asked the judge to order that John Griffin, who is free on bail, be incarcerated pending sentencing. Judge Timothy J. Martin declined. Susan Griffin has been in custody since her arrest.
FOR THE RECORD
An article in yesterday's editions gave an incorrect age for Andrew Griffin, whose parents were convicted of second-degree murder in his death. He would have turned 4 on Feb. 20.
THE BALTIMORE SUN REGRETS THE ERROR
The couple did not look at each other or exchange words after the verdict was announced by Martin, who presided over the nonjury trial that began Feb. 17. Later, after his wife had been led from the courtroom, John Griffin let his head sink into his hands. He walked out and sat on a bench with a friend who had flown from California to testify as a character witness.
"He's very upset," John Griffin's lawyer, Joseph Murtha, said outside the courthouse. "It was a very difficult experience for him to hear what happened to his son."
Murtha said he believed the judge found his client had committed "an act of neglect, of omission." Griffin testified that he had been too busy with his work as a computer engineer to notice his son's condition.
In court earlier, Murtha said that, at most, his client was guilty of a "gross misinterpretation of [the child's] nutritional needs."
Edward T. Barry, one of Susan Griffin's two lawyers, said he had spoken briefly with his client after the verdict was announced. "She understood what happened, that's all I can tell you," he said.
The Griffins had been charged with first-degree murder, but Martin said before announcing the verdicts that there was not sufficient evidence to establish that they deliberately sought to cause Andrew's death. But the judge repeatedly used the word preposterous to describe claims by the Griffins as to their care and concern for the child, and he frequently said, "I don't believe it."
The judge said Andrew looked "wasted away, atrophic, shrunken," in photos taken after his death. His lips were "horribly deformed," his face "frightening to behold." His legs were so thin he was incapable of walking, the judge said, refuting the couple's claim that Andrew had been "running around" with his siblings. The boy had band-like marks on the soles of his feet, suggesting he was beaten there.
