SLIDELL – Deputies in St. Tammany Parish say a Slidell man faces murder charges after beating his 7-week-old son to death.

Anthony Dearmas, 25, was charged with first-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to a juvenile Monday. He was booked into the St. Tammany Parish Jail.

Deputies responded to 1200 Eagle Lake Boulevard Wednesday night for an infant who was not breathing. STPSO said paramedics were able to revive 7-week-old Karter Smith and rushed him to a local hospital.

“Doctors determined that Karter had suffered severe head injuries, which prompted investigators to question Karter’s father,” STPSO said.

Investigators say Dearmas told detectives that he punched the child off a couch, knocking him to the ground, causing him to fall on his head.

“Dearmas claimed he became frustrated due to Karter's constantly crying,” investigators said.

The child was determined to be brain dead due to his injuries and passed away Saturday. The St. Tammany Parish Coroner conducted an autopsy and determined that the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the head.

“How someone can do this to a defenseless infant is beyond me,” Sheriff Randy Smith said. “Even more disturbing is the fact this was his own child. Mr. Dearmas is where he belongs: behind bars.”