A Clinton Township man, Jonathon Cheek, has entered a no-contest plea to charges of second-degree murder and second-degree child abuse in the starvation death of his two-year-old son. A no-contest plea is treated much the same as a guilty plea during sentencing in Michigan. The plea arrangement has set forth a recommended sentence ranging from 24 to 50 years in prison, according to The Detroit News.
Records show that authorities were called to Cheek's home on March 16, 2023, after receiving a report of an unresponsive child. The boy was found deceased and a medical examiner later confirmed that he had died from fatal starvation. Cheek is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18, as per court records, and was facing a potential life sentence before the plea agreement. His co-defendant, Sierra Pearl Zaitona, the child's mother, is set to stand trial on April 1, 2025, and information from ClickOnDetroit indicates that Zaitona found the child dead while Cheek was reportedly visiting his mother's house.
Further complicating the case is Cheek's criminal history, which includes a 2019 charge of aggravated assault and domestic violence in Clinton Township. As reported by Macomb Daily, he pleaded guilty to the assault charge, while the domestic violence charge was dismissed. At the time of his sentencing for the death of his son, he will receive credit for over 18 months already served in jail. His bond was initially set at $1 million but was subsequently lowered to $250,000 by Judge Edward Servitto.
