Ellsworth airman found guilty of murdering 6-month-old son Thursday

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - An Ellsworth airman is found guilty of murdering his six-month-old son.

A military panel found Senior Airman James T. Cunningham guilty in a court-martial trial on base. Cunningham was arrested after police were called to a residence on Hanover Street in Rapid City last March for a report of an unresponsive infant and the boy later died.

Cunningham was accused of punching the boy in the head while his defense says the child accidentally fell. He was originally charged in state court, but the case was later moved to the military court in August.

March 3 medical records from Monument Health say the baby suffered “non-accidental trauma,” while the autopsy listed his death as a homicide.

The court-martial now moves into the sentencing phase.