Decatur Man Convicted in Death of Girlfriend’s 19-Month-Old Son

DECATUR, Georgia – A DeKalb County jury has convicted a Decatur man accused of fatally beating his girlfriend’s 19-month-old son in 2021, according to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said 28-year-old Kentavious Hardnett was found guilty Thursday of felony murder and first-degree cruelty to children in connection with the child’s death on Jan. 24, 2021.

According to investigators, the child’s mother had known Hardnett for two years and had been dating him for approximately two months when she brought her son to Hardnett’s apartment on Hatton Drive in Scottdale on Jan. 21, 2021.

Authorities said the mother left the toddler in Hardnett’s care while she went to work around 3:30 p.m. She later reported seeing no injuries or unusual behavior from the child during a video call around 5 p.m.

Investigators said Hardnett later carried the unresponsive toddler to a neighboring apartment around 7 p.m. The neighbor called 911, but after emergency crews were delayed, she drove Hardnett and the child to Emory Decatur Hospital.

Medical personnel found the toddler in cardiac arrest and respiratory failure when he arrived at the hospital. Doctors restored his pulse through CPR and intubation, prosecutors said.

The child was later transferred to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, where scans revealed bilateral subdural hemorrhages and extensive retinal hemorrhaging. Authorities said the child never regained consciousness and was declared brain dead before life support was removed Jan. 24, 2021.

Investigators with the DeKalb County Police Department detained Hardnett at the hospital and questioned him about the child’s injuries.

According to prosecutors, Hardnett claimed the toddler fell asleep and later fell from a bed before becoming unresponsive. Medical experts, including a child abuse pediatrician, a medical examiner, and a pediatric neuroradiologist, testified the injuries were consistent with abusive head trauma and not a fall from a bed.

An autopsy also revealed multiple scalp contusions consistent with blows to the head, according to prosecutors.

Nora L. Polk, a DeKalb County Superior Court judge, is expected to schedule sentencing in the coming weeks.

The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorneys Sarah Hilleren and Emily Donkervoet.