When I was a young child, it wasn't always easy to appreciate how great weekends are.
For me, Fridays were when I got to go to parties or see friends, but Saturdays were much quieter affairs, where my parents would rest and I would be left pretty much to my own devices. That meant lots of cartoons and video games, of course, but what happened if I got hungry?
Most young children will resort to the tried and tested staple that is cereal, but one boy tragically lost his life after his bowl of cereal turned out to be anything but, according to law enforcement officers out in Indiana.
On June 21, eight-year-old Curtis Collman III woke up somewhere in Seymour, Indiana, and he was hungry. He said as much to his father, Curtis Gilbert Collman II, but Curtis Senior told his son there was no food in the house. In his mind, that was the end of the situation.
But eight-year-olds can be pretty resourceful at the best of times, and Curtis III had spotted something that he thought would be his breakfast that day. Speaking to local law enforcement, Collman said that while he didn't have any food in the house, he did have some methamphetamine left on a plate. A police search confirmed this, saying it would be possible to confuse the meth for cereal, if the conditions were right.
"A clear glass plate was located in the kitchen area... Methamphetamine can be brownish in color, and crystal-like. One officer commented the brown crystal on the plate could have been mistaken for cereal crumbs with no lights in the apartment."
Collman told police that when his son woke him up again, he "was not acting right". He says that his son was "laying there, talking to his brother, who was not there". According to Collman Senior, the boy started twitching, "bouncing his face on the floor" and scratching his face. His temperature skyrocketed, and Collman poured water on him in an attempt to cool him down.
It got so bad, that Collman had to bring in a female friend to help him out at around 11am. She sang to young Curtis in an attempt to calm him down, but told his dad that the boy needed to go to hospital, but Curtis Senior refused. He ripped the phone out of her hand, and screamed: "I’m not going back to prison."
He then reportedly pulled a gun, saying he'd kill all three of them. The female friend said she bolted out of the door, got in her car and drove away. She was "scared for her life and did not know what to do", according to police, thinking that Collman would "hunt her down".
But instead, Collman took his son to his grandmother's house, but by that time, the eight-year-old had turned stiff and blue.
It was then that they called the cops, and young Curtis was taken to Schneck Medical Center, where he later died. Collman is facing several charges, including neglect of a dependent, pointing a firearm, possession of methamphetamine and intimidation. If convicted, he could face up to 40 years in prison.
