Cinceir Croxton, 25, received a 20-year prison sentence on Monday for the death of his 2-year-old son, Cinceir 'CJ' Croxton Jr., in Spotsylvania, Virginia. The toddler died in December 2023 with cocaine in his system after spending time in a Pack 'n Play with snakes. Croxton had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, child abuse, and drug charges.
Cinceir Croxton and the boy's mother, Kahleighya Coleman, were staying at an Econo Lodge in Spotsylvania to avoid scrutiny from authorities over their treatment of CJ, who also suffered from sickle cell disease requiring treatment every two months but received none. On December 7, 2023, Croxton found his son unconscious and called 911. CJ was rushed to a hospital, where he died after testing positive for cocaine, prompting doctors to alert police, according to local reports from WRIC. Detectives from the Spotsylvania County Sheriff's Office searched the room and discovered about 70 grams of cocaine on a PlayStation and in an unlocked safe, along with $4,000 in cash and a gun in a clothes hamper. They also found a Pack 'n Play containing a reptile cage with snakes; CJ had tested positive for salmonella, commonly carried by reptiles, but Croxton and Coleman refused treatment. Child Protective Services had begun investigating the parents when CJ was 6 months old following complaints that Croxton left the infant alone in a car seat with loud music playing to drown out his crying. The family relocated, evading CPS, which closed the case as incomplete. Coleman pleaded guilty last month to second-degree murder and child abuse, receiving 15 years in prison. At sentencing, Croxton professed he loved his son 'dearly,' but Judge William Glover stated the boy's living conditions 'inevitably' caused his death. 'None of these actions were accident,' Glover said. 'It was a series of choices you made.'