Chicago man sentenced to life in prison in Iowa boy’s death

DAVENPORT, Iowa — A Chicago man who was convicted of killing his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son in Davenport has been sentenced to to life in prison without parole.

Tre Henderson was sentenced Wednesday after being found guilty in February of first-degree murder, child endangerment resulting in death and child endangerment-multiple acts, The Quad-City Times reported.

An autopsy found the boy, Ja’Shawn Russell, died May 1 of blunt force trauma. Court documents said Henderson assaulted the boy in April 2018, causing injuries that resulted in the boy vomiting several times over four days.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Henderson waived his right to be in court for sentencing. Henderson indicated on a form he signed to waive his appearance that he will appeal his conviction and sentence.

The boy’s mother, Jacqueline Majanise Rambert, 26, was sentenced in March to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty in January to child endangerment resulting in death and child endangerment-multiple acts.

Rambert called 911 on April 27, 2018, because her son was choking and unresponsive, according to the arrest affidavit. The boy was airlifted to University of Iowa Hospitals and died May 1.