Michigan City Man charged with Murder of 5 Year Old Child
On March 2, 2025, Michigan City Police were dispatched to a call for service at Normandy Village for an unresponsive child.
Upon arrival, the mother of the child reported to officers that she found her 5-year-old child unresponsive around 6:30 AM, in his bedroom on the floor next to an air mattress. The mother reported that the child was cold to touch, so the mother tried warming the child up with blankets. The mother went on to say that, when the blankets weren’t working, she placed the child in a hot shower. She stated that the child began making noises, but then his body went limp, his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he became unresponsive again. It was at this point when the mother called 911 for help. The child was taken by EMS to a local hospital and later flown to a hospital in Chicago.
According to court documents, on March 5, 2025, the MCPD received a call from the Cook County Medical Examiner and was informed that the victim’s cause of death was listed as multiple injuries due to assault, a homicide. The victim suffered from contusions on the scalp, subdural hematoma, diffuse subarachnoid hemorrhage, subdural hemorrhage, bruising/abrasions to the buttocks and lower back, abrasions to the right neck and behind the right ear and to the upper and lower bilateral extremities.
The victim’s mother’s boyfriend (the suspect) Brice A. Bainum, 32 years old, was witnessed to be assaulting the victim on the day of the incident.
According to court documents, Bainum had been alone with the victim in the bathroom, at which time the mother found the victim on the floor, in a position indicating to her that the victim had been struck and was visibly shaken and crying. The mother pled with Bainum not to hit the victim anymore, and he told her ”F**k you, he is not going to bite me.” Bainum was also the last person to interact with the 5 year old victim. A neighbor/witness overheard some commotion in the victim’s apartment that indicated to them a child was pleading for some form of activity to stop, and said that they would be a “good boy.” Specifically, the neighbor heard a little boy saying, “No, please stop, I will be a good boy.” The neighbor then heard what sounded like someone thrashing in water. Bainum did not allow the victim’s mother to call for EMS when she first discovered him on the floor, and he took her phone away from her.
Additionally, the victim’s mother reported that, before police arrived, Bainum told her to tell the police that he was sleeping while it was happening. The mother also stated that, prior to coming to the police station for her interview, Bainum told her that she cannot change her story about what happened, and to not say anything different. The mother reported to police that she was afraid of Bainum, as he had been physically, sexually, and mentally abusing her.
The victim’s weight was reported to be 35 lbs. and the suspects height was 5’9” and 160 lbs.
Brice Bainum is currently lodged at the Laporte County Jail. Brice A. Bainum was charged on March 6,2025 with:
Murder
Interference With Reporting a Crime: Class A Misdemeanor
