In a quiet stretch of Lexington County, South Carolina, a young father stands accused of an act so far outside ordinary human life that the community is still trying to find words for it. Michael Comer, 25, is charged with trying to kill his eleven-month-old son, Koah, by burying him alive in a dog crate, and a magistrate has ruled he will remain behind bars while the case moves toward a December hearing. The boy survived a day of desperate searching, carried through the cold and the dark by the small mercy of an air pocket and a towel. Why it happened remains unspoken by the authorities, and
Bond Denied for South Carolina Father Accused of Burying His 11-Month-Old Son Alive
An 11-month-old boy was buried alive in a dog crate and survived after rescuers found him following roughly 24 hours of searching.
Rescuers heard cries from below the freshly disturbed soil
Mark
Why did the boy survive a full day underground?
Mimi
The sheriff pointed to two things: cool temperatures and an air pocket made by a towel wrapped around the crate below ground. Then searchers saw freshly disturbed soil and heard cries.
Mark
How big was the search?
Mimi
Dozens of first responders covered the countryside. The boy was found after about 24 hours.
Luke
Keep in mind that the survival explanation is the sheriff's assessment, not a medical or forensic finding we've seen.
Mark
What do we know about why this happened?
Mimi
Nothing official. Authorities haven't revealed a motive.
Luke
Right. The 911 call is Patricia Comer's account of her son's mental health and threats, not a diagnosis or a finding by anyone in court.
Mark
And the prior case?
Mimi
In October he was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to domestic violence involving Koah's mother. The sheriff said the parents have had situations.
Luke
The investigator's claims of no remorse and an attempt to flee the state were made at the hearing. We haven't seen evidence of them, and Comer has no attorney yet to respond.
Mark
What's next?
Mimi
A hearing on Dec. 10, with Koah expected to make a full recovery.
Le Pouls
- A missing infant and a father in custody turned a routine morning into a frantic search across the countryside of Lexington County.
- Dozens of first responders combed the land for a day before the faint sound of crying rose from freshly turned soil.
- The magistrate denied bond, pressing the case toward a formal hearing while the defendant still waits for an appointed attorney.
- The child has left the hospital and is expected to recover, yet the questions about motive and the family's troubled past remain open until the December 10 hearing.
In a quiet stretch of Lexington County, South Carolina, a young father stands accused of an act so far outside ordinary human life that the community is still trying to find words for it. Michael Comer, 25, is charged with trying to kill his eleven-month-old son, Koah, by burying him alive in a dog crate, and a magistrate has ruled he will remain behind bars while the case moves toward a December hearing. The boy survived a day of desperate searching, carried through the cold and the dark by the small mercy of an air pocket and a towel. Why it happened remains unspoken by the authorities, and the story now rests in a space where a family's history of violence, a mother's fears, and a child's fragile life all press against one another.
A magistrate in Lexington County, South Carolina, refused bond on Thursday for Michael Comer, 25, who is accused of burying his eleven-month-old son, Koah, alive in a dog crate beneath a stand of scrubby pines. The hearing came three days after the boy was reported missing, and the investigator told the court that Comer showed no remorse and had tried to flee the state. An attorney had not yet been appointed.
For roughly twenty-four hours, dozens of first responders searched the countryside. Then investigators noticed freshly disturbed soil and heard cries from beneath it. Rescuers freed the boy, who was clinging to life. The sheriff said cool temperatures and an air pocket made by a towel around the crate likely saved him. Koah has since left the hospital and is expected to recover fully.
The boy's grandfather, John Comer, had opened his home to his son and grandson the day before, after Michael said they needed somewhere to stay. Standing near the small hole on a neighbor's property, he said he could not imagine anyone reaching such a point. Authorities have not disclosed a motive, but the family's past is part of the picture. Michael Comer pleaded guilty in October to domestic violence involving the boy's mother and was placed on probation.
A 911 call released Thursday adds a further, painful layer. Koah's grandmother told the dispatcher her son had severe schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression, that she had been worried about leaving the child with him, and that he had threatened suicide the night before. The next court date is December 10.
A magistrate in Lexington County, South Carolina, denied bond on Thursday for Michael Comer, a 25-year-old man accused of burying his 11-month-old son, Koah, alive in a dog crate beneath a clump of scrubby pines. The hearing came three days after the boy was reported missing.
Tyler Douglas, the lead investigator for the Lexington County Sheriff's Department, told Magistrate Gary W. Reinhart that Comer showed no remorse for trying to kill his son and had tried to flee the state. Reinhart approved a public defender for Comer and set a hearing for Dec. 10. An attorney had not yet been appointed as of the hearing.
Comer is charged with attempted murder, burglary and unlawfully placing a child at risk. He has been in custody in Lexington County since Monday, the day Koah was reported missing. Authorities have not said anything about a motive.
Koah was found after roughly 24 hours. Dozens of first responders had searched the countryside for the boy, who has reddish-blond hair. After a full day, authorities spotted freshly disturbed soil and heard cries coming from below it, Sheriff Jay Koon said. Rescuers freed him, and the sheriff told reporters the child was "clinging to life" at that point. Koon said the boy likely survived because of cool temperatures and an air pocket created by a towel wrapped around the crate underground.
Koah was released from the hospital Tuesday night and is expected to make a full recovery.
John Comer, the suspect's father, said he had opened his home to his son and grandson on Monday after Michael Comer said they needed a place to stay. On Wednesday he showed an Associated Press reporter the small hole on a neighbor's property where rescuers uncovered the child. "I cannot imagine how somebody could come to the point that that would be the right thing to do, or the thing to do at all," he told the AP.
There is some background. In October, Michael Comer was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to domestic violence involving the boy's mother. Sheriff Koon said Koah's parents "have had some situations," and added that children sometimes get caught in the middle.
A 911 call released Thursday gave a further glimpse of that morning. Patricia Comer told the dispatcher that her son had "severe schizophrenia and bipolar and depression." She said she had been "kindly worried" about leaving Koah with his father. According to her, he had threatened to kill himself the night before and asked her for sleeping pills. She also said he kept saying he would take the child to New York, which he could not do because he was on probation.
The next court date is Dec. 10, and Comer still awaits an appointed attorney.
Citations marquantes
I cannot imagine how somebody could come to the point that that would be the right thing to do, or the thing to do at all.— John Comer, suspect's father, to the AP
Children sometimes get caught in the middle.— Sheriff Jay Koon
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