Man sentenced to over 10 years in connection with death of 3-month-old son

A man charged with second-degree murder has been sentenced in connection with the death of his three-month-old son last year.

Mark Russell Forster, 40, has been sentenced to serve just over 10 years (128 months) in prison. He has credit for 490 days already served.

RELATED: White Bear Lake man charged with murder for shaking 8-week-old son who later died

As previously reported, on Jan. 31, 2024, White Bear Lake officers received a report from staff at St. John’s Hospital in Maplewood about an 8-week-old infant, Jackson Dallas Forster. According to a criminal complaint, staff members at the hospital suspected child abuse.

Jackson’s mother brought him to the hospital because he was seizing and blue, with scans showing multiple brain bleeds. Jackson was transferred to Masonic Children’s Hospital.

Officers spoke to Jackson’s parents, and Mark, the father, commented to a physician that he may have “dropped [Jackson] or done something,” according to court documents. He added that he wasn’t in his right state of mind the night prior.

Police learned that Mark usually took care of Jackson when he got home from work at 1 a.m., as Jackson usually woke up around 2:30 a.m.

Jackson’s mother told police that on Jan. 31, Mark had taken Jackson to the living room around 2:30 a.m. and she went back to sleep. She later woke up around 6 a.m. to get ready for work and to get her daughter ready for school.

Jackson was with Mark until she got home that afternoon and reportedly took a longer nap than usual that day. Jackson reportedly woke up around 2:30 p.m., spit up, and then went back to sleep, which the mother noted was “unusual.”

The complaint states that Jackson woke up around 5 p.m., and then “tensed up” and was crying “a different cry.” He wouldn’t take his bottle and started arching his back.

One of his arms was “all tensed up” and straight down at his side and the other arm was flailing. His face twitched and he had a spasm in his leg, court documents state.

Jackson’s mother and Mark brought the infant to the emergency room.

The mother later told police that she had been concerned about Mark’s drinking.

Mark told police that he had “kinda delved into liquor a little bit” when he got home from work. He also later admitted to smoking a bowl of marijuana.

He added that he remembered putting Jackson to bed, but didn’t remember how or when he went to bed.

Court documents add that Mark said he had approximately five drinks beginning at around 1 a.m. He said he woke up at 6 a.m. to feed Jackson and said he was “fine, fussy whatever.” He put Jackson in his swing, where he slept until 10 a.m. before waking up for food and then going back to sleep.

At some point, Mark and Jackson moved back to the bed because Mark said that’s where they were when he woke up. He told police that he must have grabbed Jackson and brought him to bed but didn’t remember doing that.

Jackson’s mother told police that she confronted Mark about the infant’s injuries, and that he admitted he may have done something but didn’t remember because he had been drinking.

In a follow-up interview with police, Mark said he had anxiety that he may have hurt Jackson by dropping or sitting on him, but didn’t remember, court documents state.

Mark told investigators that Jackson’s mother didn’t cause the infant’s injuries and that he couldn’t rule himself out as the cause of the injuries.

Child abuse specialists from the Center for Safe and Healthy Children reported to investigators that Jackson’s injuries were highly consistent with abusive head trauma. The specialists added that his injuries were consistent with being shaken.

Jackson died on March 22, with the Hennepin County Medical Examiner saying his death was caused by blunt force head trauma.

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