Collman receives 60-year sentence

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A 43-year-old Seymour man convicted on five criminal charges stemming from his failure to get treatment for his son who ingested a deadly dose of methamphetamine in June 2018 will likely spend the rest of his life in prison.

Curtis Collman II received a 60-year prison sentence from Jackson Circuit Court Judge Richard W. Poynter during a hearing Thursday morning.

Collman was found guilty of a Level 1 felony count of neglect resulting in death and four additional felony and misdemeanor counts by a jury in early October in Jackson Circuit Court.

The charges stem from the death of his 8-year-old son, Curtis Collman III, who who died June 21, 2018, at Schneck Medical Center in Seymour. A toxicology report revealed the boy had 180 times the lethal limit of meth in his bloodstream when he died.

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Evidence presented during the trial showed the younger Collman, known by family at Baby Curtis, ingested methamphetamine on a plate and became ill, and his father never sought help and even threatened one person with a gun who tried to get the boy help.

Poynter ordered Collman to spend 40 years in prison for the neglect conviction and 20 more years for being judged a habitual offender.

Collman received the maximum prison sentence, and while Poynter said he prides himself in not handing down hard sentences, he said Collman deserved it.

“This case is deeply disturbing,” Poynter said before Collman’s official sentencing. “I’ve never seen such neglect as outrageous as this.”

Poynter said drug addicts think about themselves 24/7.

“Your son was as lost as you were on that day to suffer for hours, only for you to think about yourself,” Poynter said. “You had countless opportunities to save that little boy and thought of yourself.”

Poynter said he was shocked when he read that when interrogated by police for a second time after his son’s death, Collman said, “I don’t know what to do. I still don’t know.”

Rita Cook, the victim’s grandmother, testified during the hearing.

She said he could “light up a room with a smile,” was “so lovable and rambunctious” and a “beautiful boy with freckles and red hair.”

Cook said she forgives Collman, but he should be asking for forgiveness from God and the court needs to punish him.

“You deserve what you get because of what could be avoided,” Cook said.

Rachel Cook, Collman’s ex-wife and mother of the victim, called the day of the incident the “worst day of her life” and said she lost “her son and the love of her life.”

“You’ve done everything to keep him from our family and haven’t told me that you’re sorry,” Cook said. “It’s not what you did. It’s what you didn’t do.”

Collman declined to testify or make a statement in court.

Before requesting a maximum sentence for Collman, Jackson County Prosecutor Jeff Chalfant said the maximum possible sentence is reserved for the worst of the worst when thinking about what is fair and just in every situation.

He described the incident as “neglect stacked on neglect” and said Collman’s crimes continued and escalated as the day went on.

Chalfant also said the maximum prison sentence was justified due to Collman’s criminal history and the facts and circumstances of the situation that make it so bad.

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