Ohio | Man could face death penalty in beating death of his son

CLEVELAND (AP) — An Ohio man who called 911 to say he was hearing voices and had struck his 5-year-old son with a baseball bat has been indicted on a new aggravated murder charge that could lead to a death sentence if convicted.

Matthew Ponomarenko, 32, of Parma, was indicted by a grand jury in Cleveland earlier this week, cleveland.com reported on Friday.

Jax Ponomarenko was found dead after the beating in March.

His father was indicted on an aggravated murder charge in April that didn't include death penalty specifications.

A judge ordered Ponomarenko to undergo a psychiatric evaluation to determine if he was competent to stand trial.

Prosecutors at the time said they would consider seeking a new indictment with harsher potential penalties.

A message seeking comment was left with Ponomarenko's attorney on Friday.

Ponomarenko remains jailed on a $5 million bond. His arraignment is scheduled for Thursday.

Source: myjournalcourier.com, Staff, July 30, 2021

Parma man accused of beating his 5-year-old son to death indicted on charges that carry death penalty

The Parma father who told police dispatchers he beat his 5-year-old son to death with a baseball bat while he heard voices in his head now faces charges that carry the death penalty if he is convicted.

A grand jury this week handed up an indictment charging Matthew Ponomarenko with 2 counts of aggravated murder that accuse him of killing a child under 13 years old.

One count says he purposely killed the boy, and the other that he killed him with prior calculation and design. He is also charged with two counts of endangering children, a second degree felony.

Ponomarenko, 32, has been held in the Cuyahoga County Jail on a $5 million bond since a grand jury first indicted him in April in the death of Jax Ponomarenko. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley’s office at the time said it reserved the right to go back to the grand jury and seek more charges that carried a potential death sentence.

“It is one of the most vicious attacks committed by a human being I have ever seen,” O’Malley said in a statement released Friday through a spokesman. “The fact that it was a father who did this to his young son is incomprehensible to me.”

Ponomarenko is set for an Aug. 5 arraignment in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. His attorney, Stephen McGowan, could not be immediately reached for comment Friday.

Parma police arrested Ponomarenko on March 25, the day of the killing. Ponomarenko called police to his home on Russell Avenue near West 45th Street and told a dispatcher that he struck his son with a baseball bat while hearing voices, according to a copy of the 911 call Parma police released in March.

Officers went to the home and found Jax lying on the living room floor. The boy was pronounced dead at the scene. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner determined Jax died of blunt force impacts to his head and ruled his death a homicide.

Court records show that Ponomarenko’s case was assigned to the court’s specialized docket for defendants with mental health issues, and that he underwent a psychiatric evaluation and an exam to determine if he is competent to stand trial.

Court records do not reveal the results of those evaluations.

Ponomarenko was charged in 2017 with endangering children in a case where police said he left his then 1-year-old son naked in the street while he yelled at cars.

Police said Ponomarenko later admitted to taking meth, psychedelic mushrooms and PCP.

Source: cleveland.com, Staff, July 30, 2021

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