Madison County man to serve 70 years for toddler beating death

John Holmon III will spend the next 70 years in prison for the murder of 21-month-old Jashean Rusher.

Holmon, 42, was convicted of first-degree murder in February for the beating death of his then-girlfriend’s toddler son.

In 2012, Jashean was in Holmon’s care in Granite City when the child’s grandmother came home and found him covered in bruises and not breathing. The boy was pronounced dead at Gateway Regional Medical Center in Granite City, and the coroner later determined more than 50 wounds had been inflicted on the toddler.

Jashean had sustained dozens of blunt-force injuries all over his body, head and face, as well as feces on his feet. Two pathologists had testified that he suffered a subdural hemorrhage on both sides of his head and his optic nerve.

After viewing the pictures of Jashean’s injuries, a juror fainted and was replaced with an alternate.

The defense presented one witness: a Kansas City pathologist who said he believed Jashean had an episode of apnea and that the bruises and injuries were caused by efforts to save his life. Holmon declined to testify in his defense.

Holmon faced 20-60 years in prison, with a possible extension up to 100 years. Associate Judge Neil Schroeder sentenced Holmon to 70 years in prison, with credit for the time he has served since his arrest in 2012.

Lt. Matt Eiskant of Belleville Police Department testified in the sentencing hearing that Holmon had been investigated, charged and convicted 21 years ago for the aggravated battery of a 1-year-old child, the daughter of his then-girlfriend. Based on the police report, she suffered a skull fracture and a subdural hemorrhage, Eiskant said.

Holmon had told police that the baby fell out of her crib, but in interrogation, he told them she would not stop crying, so he threw her on the bed and on the floor, and she hit her head on the side of the bed. She survived, but suffered severe brain damage, he said.

The 1995 incident of child abuse was not permitted at trial, but Schroeder ruled it could be offered during sentencing. Holmon was sentenced to six years in prison in that case.

In his summation, Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Gibbons referred to the “horrifying” evidence presented at trial.

“There is nothing that could ever explain or mitigate that violence,” he said. “The last moments of Jashean’s life were lived in absolute terror. He left the little boy there to die, while the defendant went back to sleep.”

Gibbons said child abuse is a “despicable” crime, and urged the judge to issue the maximum sentence. “We as a community will never stand for this, we will never allow it, and those who perpetrate it will be punished severely,” Gibbons said.

Defense attorney Evelyn Lewis said they intend to appeal the case to a higher court. “John wants us to make it clear, and he’s made it clear to us from day one, that he loved Jashean and treated him as a son,” Lewis said. “He did spank him, but he did not intend to kill him. … John maintains his innocence.”

When given a chance to speak, Holmon said, “I have nothing to say.”

In its post-trial arguments, defense counsel alleged that Holmon did not have a fair trial, alleging prosecutorial misconduct because the defense was not aware that the Granite City Police union had paid for the child’s funeral. They also argued that prosecutor Jennifer Mudge referred to the defense attorneys’ questions as “weird” and used inappropriate terms in her summations that overly personalized the case for the jury, referring to them as “personal attacks” on defense counsel.

However, Gibbons argued it was defense counsel that acted unprofessionally, after prosecutors found witnesses and made information and witnesses available, but said that defense attorneys never contacted the witnesses.

“I think we were all frustrated,” Gibbons said. “We bent over backward to accommodate them. … We assisted in securing witnesses, allowed them to use our PowerPoint presentations with their witnesses.”

The defense also called for a new trial on the basis that the court should have allowed a lesser charge than first-degree murder and alleges they have more evidence that Holmon was innocent. Gibbons said that manslaughter could not have been offered because it requires that the action was not intended to cause harm. “There was no evidence that this was an accident,” Gibbons said. “He repeatedly struck the child, and he said so.”

But Schroeder said there was no indication that the state withheld any evidence in its possession, and that the other issues were discussed and ruled at trial. He advised Holmon that he has 30 days to file appeals on his conviction and/or sentencing.

This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 3:33 PM with the headline "Madison County man to serve 70 years for toddler beating death."