A Michigan community college professor was arraigned Friday in the death of his severely autistic 16-year-old son, who was found drowned in an icy pool earlier this year with his arms bound, MLive reports. Timothy Koets, a 56-year-old Grand Rapids Community College associate professor, was arrested Thursday and charged with involuntary manslaughter, second-degree child abuse, second-degree child abuse committed in the presence of another child, and fourth-degree child abuse. In his Friday court appearance, Judge Judy Mulder reportedly said he could be released from jail by posting 10 percent of his $25,000 bond.
Court records say Koets left his son, Samuel, unsupervised outside near a pool on March 28. Koets left for work, telling his sleeping wife he had left Samuel outside. “Okay would you make sure freak is okay? Is mom still asleep?” Koets allegedly texted his 13-year-old daughter later that day, adding that he was “supposed to be out back.” She allegedly texted back a minute later that he was in the pool, but Koets did not mention calling 911. Paramedics and police later came to the scene, found Samuel face-down in the icy water, and could not revive him. Investigators believe the boy had been in the above-ground pool for an hour.
According to court records, Samuel's basement bedroom was in a “deplorable” state. Authorities found a mattress on the floor with no sheets and smeared with fecal matter. Fecal matter was also smeared on the walls, and dirty diapers were found throughout the room. In 2014, Children’s Protective Services had substantiated allegations that Koets and the mother were improperly supervising and threatened harm to their 16-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter. A deposition hearing for the case is reportedly scheduled for Nov. 8.
Read it at MLive
