PHOENIX — A Phoenix woman is facing first-degree murder charges after police said she beat her 4-year-old son.
A probable cause statement says on the morning of May 31, 32-year-old Michelle Shirley's child was found unresponsive by his stepfather in an apartment in the 3800 block of 83rd Avenue.
The child was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced deceased, according to court documents.
An autopsy found he had severe internal injuries including a torn spleen, and a lacerated liver and kidney. He also had broken ribs and bruises all over his body, court documents say. It appeared the child had been abused for "over a period of time," court documents say.
The mother and stepfather were both interviewed and said only the biological mother disciplined the boy, according to court documents.
The boy was being cared for by his grandmother in California until the woman became ill in 2020. That's when Shirley took custody of her child.
Court documents show the boy made comments about missing his "granny."
The stepfather told officials the day before the child was found, he was "whooped" by his mother. The stepfather said he didn't see the incident happen but heard it, saying it lasted four to five minutes and he was spanked with a shoe, according to court documents.
The mother said the last time she had spanked the child was a month prior – she later admitted she did discipline the boy with a shoe twice the day before.
According to court documents, Shirley told investigators she was struggling with her own mother's illness and the boy's potty-training regression.
She then told investigators, "I killed my baby," began to cry said something about having to live with herself.
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