Man charged with murder of Tullahoma two-year-old

Written by TSI Staff | 10 March 2010

A Tullahoma man has been charged with first degree murder in connection with the death of a two-year-old boy.

Tullahoma police have charged Thomas Fancher Greenwood, 20, of 617 Circle Drive, Tullahoma, with the death of Hayden Gage West, 2, of the same address. Greenwood, who was reportedly the boyfriend of the boy's mother, was arrested around 2:15 p.m. Wedneday with a bond set at $2 million, Tullahoma Police Chief Paul Blackwell said.

Police were disptched to the address Tuesday afternoon in reference to a CPR in progress on the two-year-old. Greenwood told police that he called 911 because the boy was having trouble breathing.

Greenwood stated that he had been holding the boy when Greenwood had a seizure, causing the boy's head to hit the bed rail. He said that a few minutes later the boy began to have difficulty breathing. Greenwood said he placed the boy on an asthma machine to help with the breathing, but that the machine was not helping, so he called 911 and was advised to perform CPR until the ambulance arrived.

EMTs on the scene stated that the boy, who was transported to Harton Hospital, did have bruises on his body.

Blackwell said that investigators from the police department went to Nashville to observe the autopsy on the body, and the medical examiner determined that there was internal bleeding resulting from blunt force trauma. After talking with investigators, a judicial commissioner issued a warrant for Greenwood's arrest.

Greenwood has a scheduled court appearance March 18 in Coffee County.