A 3-month old was hit in the face by her father "in a fit of frustration" because she would not stop crying, police said.
After being punched with a close fist, Asia Cathey was pronounced dead early Tuesday, hours after the 9:02 p.m. attack inside the family's apartment took place, USA Today reported.
Being held at the Hamilton County jail on a $200,000 bond, Shavale Johnson, from Cincinnati, has been charged with child endangerment.
More serious charges that could include murder will probably get upgraded after the coroner's officials determine the infant's cause of death, prosecutors said in court Tuesday when Johnson made a brief appearance.
Upon the baby's death, the cause was immediately considered suspicious and is being investigated, said Sgt. Mike Miller of the Cincinnati Police Department's Homicide Unit.
According to USA Today, Johnson admitted to police that he punched the baby because she would not stop crying "in a fit of frustration," police wrote in court records.
The child was rushed to the hospital after the mother called 911 around midnight. However, Johnson remained behind at the family's Mcfarlan Road residence, said Lt. Tim Brown, the night chief.
Police were alerted to the incident by hospital authorities, prompting them to arrest Johnson at about 2:30 a.m.
Although comments were declined by Johnson's attorney, his mother and sister came to his defense.
They said that he has another one-year-old daughter who is with her mother somewhere else, USA Today reported.
"He doesn't hit his kids. It's a lie," said Caress Johnson, 24, his twin sister. "He doesn't hit his kids. He plays with them."
She claimed that her brother suffered from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity upon being told that he had confessed to punching the baby in the face.
"He has mental problems," she said. "He would say yes to anything."
The infant's mother does not face charges, Miller said.
She could not be reached at her apartment Tuesday, where neighbors say the couple lives with four other children.
More information on the case would be provided later Tuesday, Agency spokesman Brian Gregg said.
