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Medford father gets 25 years Man who beat infant son to death refuses to admit guilt By Mark Freeman It wasn�t enough for Ramona Kenton to learn her former boyfriend will spend at least 25 years in prison for murdering their infant son last April in Medford. Kenton, 18, wants Frederick Lee Pyke, 22, to acknowledge publicly that his enraged punch killed 6-month-old Christopher simply because the crying infant kept his father from getting a good night�s sleep. "He shouldn�t be able to walk this earth again because Christopher can�t," Kenton said Friday. "He knows he did it, but when it comes to admitting it to the public, he can�t," she said. "Christopher wasn�t just my son. He was his (Pyke�s) son, too." Pyke passed at his last chance for that public confession Friday when he buried his chin into his chest and refused to speak in court before getting sentenced to 25 years to life. Kenton was trying to quiet a crying Christopher early April 18 at the couple�s West Medford home when Pyke angrily punched the child in the back of his head because he was "angry, frustrated and selfish" over not getting enough sleep, prosecutor Judi Harper said. The punch caused a massive spiral fracture, and Christopher died the following day at a Portland hospital. Pyke initially told authorities that he tripped and fell over the baby early that morning. But Pyke eventually confessed after Kenton, who was then pregnant with the couple�s second child, told Medford police detectives what really happened. An autopsy revealed that Christopher suffered bruises across his body, Harper said. Also, partially healed injuries to his head and ribs showed that the infant had been squeezed and shaken prior to the night of his fatal punch, Harper said. "This child did not know a life free of pain," Harper said. "He was hurt almost his entire life. That�s why he was crying. He was hurt by this defendant." Since pleading guilty to murder Sept. 29, Pyke has reverted to his old tripping story, a move Harper called "extremely offensive." Doctors say it would take a man falling 10 stories to cause the amount of damage Christopher suffered, Harper said. The ongoing denial angers Kenton, who also has a 2-month-old daughter by Pyke but who now does not have custody of her two young children. Kenton, who did not attend Pyke�s sentencing, said outside court that Pyke continues to send her letters claiming the infant�s death was not his fault. Prison, she said, is too good for him. "(Pyke�s) still living, he has rights," Kenton said. "I don�t think I�ve hated anybody more than him." Pyke is a child-abuser who himself suffered abuse as a child. Court records show that Pyke was removed from his parents� custody following beatings at their hands, Harper said. His father, Jose Ramirez, was convicted in 1990 of first-degree criminal mistreatment for whipping the face and back of Pyke, Harper said. Pyke, in turn, was convicted in juvenile court of two misdemeanor assault charges, one in 1989 and a second in 1995. He also was taken away from his home as a 12-year-old in 1990 and placed in a sex-offender treatment program after admitting to sexually abusing a younger family member, court documents state. In August 1998 in Eugene, he admitted to breaking the arm of Kenton�s daughter, then 6 months old, but he was not convicted, Harper said. Outside court, defense attorney Bob Abel said Pyke received counseling as an abuse victim, but that he did not know if he had any help as an adult. Harper said Pyke had resisted attempts to get help for breaking the cycle of abuse that too often sees victims later become abusers themselves. At Friday�s sentencing hearing, Judge Raymond White told Pyke that his past as a victim of child abuse should have taught him � and others former victims who turn into abusers themselves � why parents should never hurt their children. "But it doesn�t seem to work out that way," White said, "and this is the result." Since her son�s murder, Kenton has re-enrolled in high school and sought help to be a better parent to her two children, including a 2-month-old daughter who is also Pyke�s child. "One of my best Christmas presents is to know he got 25 years and that he�ll be gone," Kenton said. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or by e-mail at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.