Man faces murder charge in death of boy brought to Colorado hospital in 2017 with severe injuries

A man has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of a boy last year, more than five years after doctors diagnosed him with severe traumatic injuries after the man and the boy’s mother brought him to a hospital in Aurora, according to court documents.

Eddie Meyers and the boy’s mother, Taja Shannon, also face charges of child abuse resulting in death, the 18th Judicial District court documents show.

Arapahoe County District Attorney prosecutors allege that in 2017 they placed the infant in conditions that posed deadly threats and engaged in actions that led to malnourishment, lack of proper medical care, cruel punishment, mistreatment, and an accumulation of injuries.

In 2017, the two brought the boy as an infant to the Children’s Hospital of Colorado in Aurora, where doctors determined he had broken legs, broken ribs, bruises, and a traumatic brain injury, a grand jury indictment filed May 8 said. Doctors told Meyers and Shannon the infant likely would not recover fully, the indictment said. Fed through a tube, the infant never learned to crawl or speak, and was blind due to the brain injury, the indictment said. He lived in and out of hospice facilities for several years before dying last December.

Police in 2017 referred the case to Arapahoe County prosecutors for possible charges back in 2017, but they lacked evidence, the indictment said. After the boy died at a hospice, the Arapahoe County Coroner determined that the cause of death was homicide and prosecutors took up the case and filed charges. Aurora police arrested Meyers and Shannon.

A court hearing on the status of the case against Meyers was scheduled for Monday. Shannon was scheduled for arraignment on Aug. 14.