SUMMERDALE, Ala. — A Summerdale father is facing a reckless manslaughter charge after his infant son died from injuries suffered while the child was in his care, a case that has split investigators and the family’s defense attorney over whether it was a tragic accident or a crime.
John Albert McCord III, 37, was watching his 11-month-old son, John Henry Watson McCord, along with his 4-year-old stepson, Ryder Nease, at a Summerdale home in mid-May. According to a police affidavit, McCord left the two boys alone together in a bathtub full of water. The affidavit states the baby slipped under the water while his older brother tried to hold him up and repeatedly called out for help, but no one responded to the boy’s cries.
The infant died at a Mobile hospital the following day, just three days shy of his first birthday. About ten days later, Summerdale police arrested McCord and charged him with reckless manslaughter, along with possession of drug paraphernalia, chemical endangerment of a child and possession of a controlled substance.
Baldwin County District Attorney Hallie Dixon said the investigation is examining whether drug use played a role in McCord’s actions that day. Officials said a search of the Summerdale home turned up drugs and drug paraphernalia, and records showed McCord had been diagnosed with polysubstance abuse and psychosis in the weeks before his son’s death.
McCord’s attorney, Pascal Bruijn, disputes the police account, saying his client had briefly stepped out of the bathroom to retrieve a fresh towel and returned only after his stepson told him what had happened. Bruijn argues the evidence, even if accurate, points to a tragic accident or, at worst, a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide — not manslaughter. He also maintains the drug charges are unrelated to the child’s death.
The infant’s mother, Jessica McCord, 37, was not home at the time and has not been charged in her son’s death. She was arrested on the same drug-related charges days later and was released on bond. Her surviving son is no longer in her custody, officials said.
At a motion hearing at the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Baldwin County District Court Judge Scott Taylor declined a prosecution request to require McCord to wear a GPS ankle monitor, provided his bonding company approved, but did order more frequent random drug testing. Bruijn told the court McCord, who works as a laborer, has already lost job opportunities because of the monitor and cannot afford its $310 monthly cost. The case remains pending in Baldwin County court.