Louisville man charged with murder after kicking and biting 5-year-old son, police say

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A 24-year-old Louisville man is charged with murder after police said he kicked and bit his 5-year-old son before pushing him down the stairs to his death.

Officers were called to a home in the 2900 block of Conestoga Avenue — near Algonquin Park in the city's Park Duvalle neighborhood — just after 3 p.m. Tuesday on a report that a child had "sustained traumatic injuries due to a fall," Louisville Metro Police said that day.

EMS arrived on scene to find the boy unconscious but said his injuries "appeared inconsistent with and more severe than as reported," according to the arrest citation. LMPD officers then arrived, and the 5-year-old was transported to Norton Children's Hospital as LMPD's Homicide Unit took over the investigation due to the severity of the child's injuries.

The boy died the next day, LMPD said.

According to the arrest citation, police said the child had "numerous severe injuries to multiple areas of his body which caused his death," injuries that were "consistent with the child being assaulted."

Police said the investigation revealed Laron Gardner Jr., 24, the victim's father, was alone with the boy and his 4-year-old sister. According to the arrest citation, Gardner kicked, slammed and bit his 5-year-old son before pushing him down the stairs. The 4-year-old girl also told police her father kicked her in the chest as she laid on the floor.

Gardner is charged with murder (domestic violence), criminal abuse of a child 12 or under and fourth-degree assault (child abuse).