Kenton man appears on murder charge in death of 5-month-old

GIBSON COUNTY, Tenn. — The mother of 20-year-old Braxton Edwards was emotional in regard to her son’s Tuesday court hearing.

“He is not a monster,” Stacie Brewer, mother of Braxton Edwards, said outside the Gibson County Justice Center. “We will stand beside him because he is not a murderer.”

In the courtroom, Gibson County General Sessions Court Judge Mark Agee expressed his sympathy to the families of the accused and the victim, 5-month-old Maxyn Killingsworth, who reportedly died as a result of spinal injures.

“This is a horrible situation. There’s no way to make it better,” Judge Agee said. “I know there’s a lot of anger. There’s a lot of pain, heartbreak, frustration, and that’s understandable. But this is a courtroom.”

Edwards told investigators he tripped and fell on top of his girlfriend’s child while babysitting and the infant started to seize.

Along with first-degree murder, he is charged with aggravated child abuse and neglect of Killingsworth, who was taken off of life support on Saturday.

After Braxton Edwards was ushered back inside the Gibson County Jail, his family gathered in the courthouse parking lot trying to comfort his emotional mother.

“My son did not harm this child with intent and with malice,” Brewer said. “He did not harm this child with intent to kill him.”

According to court documents, a doctor stated the infant’s injuries do not reflect an accidental head trauma. The documents also reveal Edwards said he shook the baby after the seizure because he didn’t know what was wrong with the 5-month-old baby.

Edwards’ mother says her son is also hurting from what she calls an unfortunate accident.

“I’m so sorry for that mother and the loss of her baby,” Brewer said. “My son is grieving right along with her.”

The family of 5-month-old Maxyn Killingsworth weren’t at Tuesday’s hearing. A GoFundMe account has been established to help cover their medical bills and funeral costs.

Braxton Edwards is being held in lieu of a $100,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 4.