Child abuse charges upgraded to murder

CRESTVIEW, Fla. (WALA) - A Crestview man and his fiancé , charged last year with child abuse and neglect, now face homicide charges.

Florida Assistant State Attorney Bobby Elmore has tried a number of child abuse cases, including sexual abuse and homicide. He's also a father.

"I think it gives you a perspective being a parent that you wouldn't otherwise have, but I think any human being with the right moral compass would have the right attitude," said Elmore.

Elmore said Grant Sherwin and Nicole Allen were charged last December with aggravated child abuse and neglect. 

Police said Allen found Sherwin's 2-year-old son Logan in his bed, rigid and not breathing. She called 911 and they told her how to perform CPR on the boy.

The Crestview Police report says medics worked on the child for about twenty minutes before taking the boy to the emergency room.

At the hospital, a medic notified a police officer about bruising on the boy's body.

Logan was flown to Sacred Heart Hospital, where he died the next day.

"It was obvious that criminal conduct had led to the child being hospitalized and ultimately the death of the child," said Elmore.

An autopsy was performed on Logan and the results led the state attorney's office to file charges of homicide on Sherwin and Allen.

"Also, we filed a large number of child neglect charges based on witness statements we obtained that gave us specific dates of neglect of the children," said Elmore.

Sherwin also has a three-year-old daughter, named Olivia, Elmore said she was also abused.

"The most obvious thing is Logan Sherwin is not here to say what happened to him, and his sister's three years old, and will likely not be permitted to say anything either," said Elmore.

Elmore said a hearing and trial date will likely be set Thursday, during a scheduled meeting.