Wednesday, July 17, 2013 | 11:40 a.m.
A 36-year-old man has been charged with murder in the May death of his girlfriend’s 1-year-old son.
Bently Olsen died May 26, a week after he was transported to University Medical Center with apparent head trauma. The Clark County Coroner’s Office has not determined his cause and manner of death.
Bransen Locks, meanwhile, has been charged with one count of murder and two counts of child abuse, neglect or endangerment with substantial bodily harm, according to a criminal complaint.
Paramedics arrived in the early morning hours of May 19 at a home in the 2600 block of South Tenaya Way after receiving a 911 call about an unresponsive child. The arrest report outlines the following details:
Locks’ mother said her son frantically pounded on her bedroom door and announced, “Mom, Mom, get up. Help me. The baby’s not breathing.” Locks had been watching the child and the victim’s older sister — the children of his new girlfriend — after picking them up from daycare that night.
The victim’s mother, Cassandra Hamilton, told police this was the first time she had let Locks, her boyfriend of one to two weeks, take her children. Hamilton told police Olsen was acting normal when she put him in Locks’ vehicle in the daycare parking lot earlier that night.
Locks took the children back to his home, while Hamilton gave a co-worker a ride and stopped by a friend’s house.
Later, Hamilton said, Locks called her crying hysterically and stated that Olsen had a seizure and was in an ambulance en route to the hospital.
A paramedic told detectives Locks, who rode in the ambulance to the hospital, acted “more anxious than distraught” about the situation.
Locks left the hospital at some point after arriving and police found him hiding in a crawl space under his home later that morning.
Police arrested Locks on outstanding bench warrants, but Locks told police he didn’t want to speak with investigators without a lawyer. Police did not release details about the warrants.
Doctors told detectives the victim’s injuries likely occurred just prior to arriving at the hospital and that if Olsen survived, he would be “neurologically devastated.”
Detectives determined Locks, the sole care provider during the time Olsen suffered his injuries, caused injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome and blunt-force trauma to the head resulting in the child’s death.
Locks remains in the Clark County Detention Center without bail. His felony arraignment is scheduled for July 25.
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