Prosecutor: Indianapolis man convicted of stomping on 6-year-old son’s arm

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man faces jail time after he stomped on his son’s arm and punched the 6-year-old in the face.

According to a news release from the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, 61-year-old Jeffery Redd was convicted of the following charges after a two-day jury trial:

• One count of battery resulting in serious bodily injury to a person less than 14 years old, a Level 3 felony
• One count of domestic battery resulting in bodily injury to a person less than 14 years old, a Level 5 felony
• One count of battery resulting in bodily injury to a person under 14 years old, a Level 5 felony.

In May 2023, detectives from IMPD’s child abuse unit began an investigation into an injured child. The officers responded to a school in the Indianapolis Public Schools district after a 6-year-old reported to a teacher that his dad had hurt his arm.

When the child was taken to the nurse’s office, the child said that his head, arm and shoulder hurt. The court documents stated that the child told the nurse that his dad, identified as Redd, stomped on his arm and had punched him in the face.

The child was taken to a local hospital, where officials found that he had a broken collarbone, according to court documents.

In an interview with Redd at the time, he reportedly told law enforcement that he believed the IPS school and the Department of Child Services were after him for no reason. Redd claimed he used “tough love” while disciplining the kids, but denied that he broke his son’s collarbone.

During the interview, Redd had no explanation for how the child would have broken his collarbone, stating his house was “so busy” with kids that he didn’t “pay attention to (the child) enough to know when he was injured,” according to the documents.

“The defendant, a father, is meant to protect his children from harm, was instead the one inflicting it on his young son,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said in the release. “We are grateful to this young child for his bravery and willingness to tell his story and for his teacher, who believed him, and whose quick reporting ensured the abuse would stop. This conviction is a reminder to the community that any kind of violence toward our children will not be tolerated.”

Officials with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office said that Redd’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 10.