By Felicia A. Petro

Allied News Staff Writer

A Butler County judge sentenced a Harrisville man with 20 to 40 years in state prison on Wednesday in the death of his former girlfriend’s baby.

“You refer to this as an accident,” said Judge Timothy McCune to Jarred Burton Knight, who was dressed in black and white striped prison clothes.

“Perhaps this helps you and your family to deal with it, but in a court of law, it’s the murder of a child,” McCune said.

Tyler Davis died June 24, 2007, from head injuries sustained that June 23 when Knight babysat the 14-month-old alone at the Marion Township home of his then-girlfriend, Jessica Davis, 23.

Knight was arrested two days later for murder. The case did not go to trial until last month.

Prosecutors said Knight smashed Tyler’s head into the Davis’ bathroom wall out of jealousy. A month before, a paternity test revealed that Knight was not the baby’s father.

During the emotional case, Knight has claimed that he wasn’t surprised about the test results and still wanted to rear Tyler as his own. He claimed responsibility for the child’s death, but maintains it was an accident.

He’s stated that Tyler threw a tantrum and slipped from his grip when he was preparing the baby for a bath, which caused the child to hit his head on the tub and then the floor.

After three days of testimony and two hours of deliberating on a fourth day, a jury found Knight guilty of third-degree murder, endangering the welfare of children and reckless endangerment. Charges of first-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter were thrown out by the jury.

“I gave a lot of thought about this case, not just during work but outside of work,” McCune said on Wednesday.

The judge said he weighed Knight’s claim that Tyler’s death was an accident, as well as the broad support the defendant received from family and friends. Many testified at Knight’s trial that he was a peaceful person. Twenty individuals submitted letters on the defense’s behalf for McCune to read prior to sentencing.

However, it came down to one piece of evidence for the judge from Allegheny County pathologist Dr. Todd Luckasevic, who ruled Tyler’s death blunt force trauma to the head.