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Murder charged in baby's death By JESSICA SMITH A Medford man's alleged history of child abuse led grand jurors Tuesday to indict him on three murder charges. Frederick Lee Pyke, 22, now faces two counts of murder by abuse and one count of murder in the April 19 beating death of his infant son. "We presented all the (charging) options to the grand jury. It decided these were the appropriate charges given all the abuse," said lead prosecutor Judy Harper. Testimony from Medford police detectives and the baby's mother, Ramona Kenton, 18, suggested that Pyke had a history of abuse, Harper said. Pyke, who remains jailed on $1 million bail, was arrested April 18 after he and Kenton took their 6-month-old son, Christopher Pyke, to Rogue Valley Medical Center, where the baby was treated for head and spinal injuries. Investigators said Pyke struck the baby in the head with his fist while Kenton was comforting the child. They originally charged Pyke with second-degree assault and first-degree criminal mistreatment. The baby died the next day at Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland. Police charged Pyke with first-degree manslaughter, a charge defined by Oregon Revised Statute 163.118 as criminal homicide committed recklessly. It's a class A felony punishable by 20 years in prison. Prosecutors said Pyke's alleged history of abuse toward his son and Kenton's daughter from a previous relationship, 2-year-old Jasmine, justified stronger charges. Under ORS 163.115, murder by abuse is committed when someone causes the death of a child under 14 years of age and that person has previously abused the victim or another child under 14 years of age. Even though Pyke is charged in a single death, he was indicted on three murder counts so prosecutors can present three different theories of the crime at trial. Conviction on any one of the murder charges carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. Pyke is scheduled for arraignment May 3 in Jackson County Court. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA