He didn't want her to have the baby. So he poisoned their newborn's bottle with antifreeze.
A Georgia man convicted of poisoning his newborn baby by adding antifreeze to the child's breastmilk bottles has been sentenced to 50 years after a jury found him guilty of the crime.
Curtis Jack was convicted last week of attempted murder and first-degree child cruelty in relation to the Oct. 2, 2020 attempt on the newborn's life, which came just eight days after the child was born, the South Fulton Police Department reported.
Police Sgt. Pserda Dickerson, the lead homicide investigator on the case, told USA TODAY a jury convicted Jack Thursday following a week-long trial.
A judge sentenced Jack to 40 years in prison to be followed by 10 years of probation, Dickerson said Monday.
According to police, the baby's mother gave birth to their daughter on Sept. 24, 2020, despite Jack wanting her to terminate the pregnancy.
While the baby's mother was hospitalized after its birth, police said, Jack picked up bottles of breastmilk and delivered them to the child's grandmother who was caring for the baby while her mother recovered in the hospital.
Newborn baby drank breastmilk poisoned with antifreeze
Within less than 24 hours of drinking the milk, police wrote in a release, the newborn became “critically ill" and was suspected of being poisoned.
The baby was taken to a local hospital, where she tested positive for ethylene glycol, a chemical found in antifreeze often used in cars.
When police confronted Jack about the possibility the child was poisoned, he told detectives he added antifreeze to the breastmilk.
A warrant was then obtained and police arrested Jack on charges of criminal attempt to commit murder and cruelty to children in the first degree.
Naked teacher in car arrested:Nebraska woman arrested after police find her, teen student naked in Honda
Curtis Jack convicted of attempted murder for poisoning baby's bottle with antifreeze
During the trial, prosecutors presented testimony from the child's mother, grandmother and law enforcement officers, police said, and medical experts demonstrated "how easy it was to poison the breastmilk."
The jury found Jack guilty on both felony counts and a judge sentenced him to 50 years, 40 years of that to be served in prison.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.