Hunter Locke-Hughes is a killer from Michigan who was convicted of the murder of a disabled six year old boy
According to court documents six year old Terrance “Terry” Adams was nonverbal, suffered from CHARGE which is “coloboma, heart disease, atresia of the choanae, retarded growth and mental development, genital anomalies, and ear malformations and hearing loss.” The little boy also had to be fed through a stomach tube
Hunter Locke-Hughes apparently became enraged when Terry Adams was not cooperating when he was taking a bath and had also vomited. Hunter responded by striking the boy several times before pushing his head under water for a long enough time to cause his death
Terry Adams would be dead before Hunter Locke-Hughes would call 911. The little boy had previously been removed from the home due to allegations of abuse
Hunter Locke-Hughes would be arrested, plead guilty and was sentenced to five to thirty years in prison
Hunter Locke-Hughes Case
Today, 22- year-old Hunter Locke-Hughes was sentenced for his First Degree Child Abuse (life felony) and Involuntary Manslaughter (15 year felony) conviction for drowning his girlfriend’s six year old special needs child.
Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Kathryn Viviano sentenced Locke-Hughes to 90 months to 30 years on the First Degree Child Abuse conviction, which was 45 months below the sentencing guidelines. On the Involuntary Manslaughter conviction Judge Viviano sentenced him to the low end of the sentencing guidelines at 43 months – 15 years. The sentences will run concurrent. The Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office is appealing the sentence.
“When a sentencing fails to reflect the gravity of the offense, we must appeal it on behalf of the victim, victim’s family, and the community,” said Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido.
The Macomb County Prosecutor’s office represents the people. We are committed to achieving justice and following the laws of the State of Michigan.
Hunter Locke-Hughes News
The Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office said it will appeal the sentence issued Wednesday for a Fraser man convicted of drowning his girlfriend’s 6-year-old special needs son in 2021.
Hunter Locke-Hughes, 22, was sentenced to 7 1/2 to 30 years in prison for first-degree child abuse, and 43 months to 15 years for involuntary manslaughter. Macomb County Circuit Judge Kathryn Viviano gave Locke-Hughes credit for 706 days, or nearly two years, in jail, according to online court records.
The Prosecutor’s Office stated in a release that the sentencing on the child abuse conviction was 45 months below the sentencing guidelines and that Viviano sentenced Locke-Hughes to the low end of the sentencing guidelines on the involuntary manslaughter conviction.
“When a sentencing fails to reflect the gravity of the offense, we must appeal it on behalf of the victim, victim’s family and the community,” Prosecutor Peter Lucido said the release.
Dan Garon, the attorney representing Locke-Hughes, said: “Judge Viviano took an incredible amount of time and effort into analyzing all of the factors that needed to be addressed in tailoring a sentence that was appropriate given the facts and the circumstances of this particular case, and any comment to the contrary is uninformed.”
Hunter Locke-Hughes was convicted by a jury Feb. 5.
He originally was charged with first-degree child abuse and felony murder, which carried the potential of a life sentence. Involuntary manslaughter is a 15-year felony.
Hunter Locke-Hughes was accused of holding the boy, Terrance ‘Terry’ Adams, under water while giving him a bath on Dec. 28, 2021, according to a prior release from the Prosecutor’s Office and its communications director, Dawn Fraylick.
She said the incident occurred in a bathtub at a residence in Clinton Township. Locke-Hughes, who was 19 at the time, called 911; the boy’s mother was at work, Fraylick said.
The boy was born with CHARGE syndrome, a rare genetic condition that affects several parts of a child’s body, including the eyes, nerves, heart, nasal passages, genitals and ears, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Children diagnosed with this condition have unique facial features and a combination of symptoms, according to the clinic’s website, and every person with the condition is affected in different ways.
Despite the condition, the boy overcame many obstacles, such as learning to walk and partially seeing, according to his obituary.
