PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria County Judge found Carl Rogers Jr., 31, guilty Wednesday of Aggravated Battery to a child after causing a traumatic brain injury to a five-year-old boy left in his care.
The incident occurred in April 2024 in Peoria Heights. The child recovered after several weeks of hospitalization and physical therapy, according to the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s office.
On April 23, 2024, around 1:30 a.m., Peoria Heights police responded to a 911 call reporting an unresponsive child in the 1000 block of East Paris. Officers found the child lying on the floor with his mother. The child was breathing but unconscious and was transported to the hospital by ambulance.
During the three-day bench trial, the child’s mother testified she worked two jobs and left her son and daughter in Rogers’ care. Rogers is the father of her daughter. She testified that when she briefly returned home around 3 p.m. on April 22 to drop off food, her son appeared normal and uninjured. When she arrived home before 1 a.m., she found her son breathing but unresponsive.
A treating physician and child abuse expert testified the boy suffered a traumatic brain injury. They stated the injury was non-accidental trauma requiring severe force and was consistent with abuse.
The court viewed surveillance video from the home around midnight on April 23, 2024, showing Rogers outside with the child, repeatedly calling the boy’s name and attempting to get a response while the boy appeared limp and unresponsive.
The boy, now seven years old, testified during the trial, responding to questions by nodding his head. Using a stuffed animal, he demonstrated being dropped and shaken.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 8, 2026.
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