Trial delay for man accused of killing son, 3, over relationship with teen
CAMDEN, N.J. -- A judge has agreed to delay the murder trial of a New Jersey father accused of killing his 3-year-old sonbecause he had become an impediment to his relationship with a teenage girlfriend.
David Creato Jr.’s trial was scheduled to start Monday. But the judge agreed to reschedule it for Jan. 9 after Creato’s attorney sought more time to obtain a report from an expert witness, a forensic medical examiner.
Creato has pleaded not guilty to murder and child endangerment charges. He remains jailed on $750,000 bail.
Camden County prosecutors have said Creato’s son, Brendan, suffered “homicidal violence.”
They say the 23-year-old Haddon Township man killed Brendan last October and then reported him missing, prompting a town-wide search. Prosecutors have said the boy’s body was found about three quarters of a mile from the father’s home in the woods near a muddy trail, though his clean socks indicated he had been dumped there.
Prosecutors say Creato’s girlfriend, 17, had resented dealings with the boy’s mother and didn’t like children. They allege the teen was threatening to break off the relationship, reported CBS Philadelphia.
Defense lawyer Richard Fuschino has said the case against Creato is weak and relies on circumstantial evidence.