A Colorado couple have been charged with first degree murder after they killed their 11-year-old son by forcing him to drink too much water in a short period of time. Ryan and Tara Sabin turned themselves in to police on June 16, though the child, Zachary, died on March 11 from forced water intoxication.
- This was a disgusting and totally avoidable crime. According to the coroner, Zachary had been made to drink four 24-ounce bottles of water in the period of four hours without eating. The arrest affidavit said that Ryan and Tara Sabin required the child to drink at least two bottles of water a day because they thought he had a bed-wetting problem and that his urine “smelled strongly.”
- So what actually happened here? According to Ryan Sabin, Tara called him on the evening of March 10 to say that Zachary hadn’t had his water and she was forcing him to do so. He then said that when he got home, Zachary was at the sink taking sips of water and then throwing it up. Ryan told Zach that it was because he was drinking too slowly and instructed him to “chug” it.
- Ryan and Tara ate dinner without Zachary while he continued to drink water. After the other kids went to bed, Ryan claimed that Zachary was “throwing a fit” on the floor, telling his dad that his legs were hurting and he couldn’t drink any more water. Ryan kicked him twice and even picked Zachary up and dropped him, at which point he hit his head on the ground and “continued throwing a fit.”
- The couple knew something was wrong with Zachary and did nothing. Ryan’s account continued by saying that he took Zachary outside at one point to calm down and that when he brought the child back in, he “fell asleep” on the floor. They later woke him at around 11:15 p.m. at which point they said he was “grunting and making other unintelligible noises” and they put him to bed anyway. When they awoke at 6:15 a.m. the next morning, Zachary wouldn’t wake up and authorities pronounced him dead at the scene.
- This was murder, pure and simple. No attorney could be found for Ryan and Tara Sabin, perhaps unsurprisingly. They made their first appearance in court on Tuesday, June 23, at which point first degree murder charges against Tara were dropped, according to The Denver Channel. However, she will still face charges of child abuse resulting in death and several counts of child abuse not resulting in injury. Here’s hoping both of them face a very long time in prison.
