Police Report

By Annette Christie

Beshires pleads guilty to first degree murder

 Brandon Beshires surprised his attorney and the Berrien County Trial Court when according to published reports, he pleaded guilty to first degree murder in connection with 8-month old Carter Donovan.  Carter died on February 19 after being in Beshires’ care while his mother Autumn Atchley went to a doctor appointment.

Beshires was in court for a hearing to handle some motions in preparation for his February 19, 2017 trial on the charges.  His attorney, Donald Sappanos, stated that the plea was against his advice and he asked to withdraw from the case.

Cotter allowed Sappanos to withdraw and accepted the guilty plea by Beshires.  With the plea, the charges of first degree felony murder and first degree child abuse will be dismissed.

According to published reports, Beshires told the court that he took Carter to the Hot Spot in Coloma while he was watching him.  He took baby Carter into the restroom after he became fussy.  Beshires said that he fell while trying to calm the child.  He then told the court that he put Carter on his shoulder and then he fell backwards.  He said he freaked out and he hit the baby’s head on the floor and that the baby died.

As he was being questioned by Judge Cotter, he said that he slammed him on the floor and that he became angry when the baby would not stop crying. He told the judge according to the published records that he wanted to kill him.  When the judge asked him if he thought about it before he did it and Beshires told him yes.

Records show that under questioning by Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Taylor, he asked Beshires if he thought about it before he slammed the baby’s head to the floor and Beshires answered yes and also answering yes when asked if he consciously decided to kill him.

The hearing in Cotter’s courtroom was underway when Sappanos asked for a recess.  Following that recess, Beshires entered his plea.  He will be sentenced on January 30; however, the mandatory sentence for first degree murder is life in prison without the chance for parole.

Atchley is also set to be sentenced on January 30 for her role after the fact.  In questioning after the death of her son, Atchley lied to police about who her baby had been with.  During her arraignment appearance in court, she told the court that she was afraid of Beshires and that is why she lied.  She has since pleaded no contest to a charge of being an accessory after the fact.  This charge is a five-year felony.

Coloma Police Department activity

 On December 11, 2016, at approximately 5:05 p.m., Coloma Township officers responded to a residence in the 5100 block of Becht Rd. for an assault complaint. The suspect, a 52-year-old Coloma man, was found to have several outstanding warrants and was lodged at the Berrien County Jail. The assault complaint has been turned over to the Berrien County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

The department also responded to Harding’s Friendly Market at approximately 3:50 p.m. on December 6, 2016, for a shop lifting complaint. Staff at the store observed a woman place candy and other items in her purse. When the officer arrived the suspect, a 47-year-old Watervliet woman, was walking out of the store without paying for the items. The suspect was arrested without incident. She was then transported to the Berrien County Jail and lodged on retail fraud charges