A Detroit man was convicted Monday in the 2025 murder of his girlfriend’s 3-year-old son, officials said.
Michael Yharbrough was found guilty of murder, torture, and first-degree child abuse after a two-week jury trial, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 26, according to authorities. The 25-year-old faces up to life in prison for the murder charge, up to life for torture, and up to life for first-degree child abuse.
His attorney, John McWilliams, was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
Yharbrough’s co-defendant and the child’s mother, Brianna Simmons, 36, also of Detroit, pleaded guilty to second-degree child abuse on May 8, the prosecutor’s office said.
In exchange for her plea and testimony against Yharbrough, prosecutors will recommend she be sentenced to 12 months in the Wayne County Jail, followed by three years of probation, officials said.
Simmons’ attorney, Jonathan Cohen, was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
She is scheduled to be sentenced on June 23.
Simmons’ son died in March 2025 after being removed from their home several times by Child Protective Services, according to media reports.
Prosecutors alleged she allowed Yharbrough to assault the child and tried to hide the abuse from authorities, reports said.
The case is among the most recent involving child abuse with ties to Michigan.
Last week, a Detroit mother convicted of child abuse in the beating death of her 8-year-old son in 2024 was sentenced to 18 months to 10 years in prison by a Wayne County Circuit Court judge.
Last month, a Roseville mother who allegedly struck her child in a video shared on social media was charged with abuse.
And a former Michigan couple who police say abused their adopted children, including restraining them in a straitjacket and dog cage, pleaded no contest to charges last month.
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@CharlesERamirez
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit man convicted in death of girlfriend’s 3-year-old son
Reporting by Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
