Frederic A Matthews IV

Matthews lived with Andrea Allen and her 2 year old son Brandon in the basement of the home of Emma Johnson and Jeffrey Allen, Andrea's uncle. On Jan. 22, 1990, defendant drove Andrea to the hospital and remained with her until 1:00 a.m., Jan. 23, 1990. Brandon stayed at home with Emma Johnson and Jeffrey Allen until 1:30 a.m., when defendant Matthews came home and took Brandon down to the basement to sleep.

The next day, Brandon's family discovered he was missing. Defendant initially denied any involvement; however, he later gave police a statement implicating himself in Brandon's disappearance. Defendant told police that at 3:00 a.m. on Jan. 23, 1990, Brandon toke up crying. Defendant hit Brandon in the chest, whereupon Brandon stopped crying for an instant. When the child began to cry again, defendant hit him in the stomach. Defendant stated he realized the child had stopped breathing, he unsuccessfully attempted to administer CPR. After defendant was certain Brandon was dead, he took the child's body and threw it down a hill into a wooded area. At trial, however, the coroner testified that Brandon was struck at least 11 separate blows which resulted in his death.