A Havelock man is facing a murder charge after the death of a 2-and-a-half-month-old infant, and he is being held without bond as the case heads to court. Police arrested 36-year-old Russell Craig Graham Jr. on Wednesday, and he is scheduled to appear in court Thursday.
According to an arrest warrant dated August 10, Graham unlawfully killed the child, as reported by WCTI. The warrant does not detail the exact circumstances of the infant's death, and no cause of death has been publicly disclosed as the case moves through the legal process.
Graham is being held without bond, a detail consistent with North Carolina's Pretrial Integrity Act, which took effect in October 2023. Under that law, magistrates are barred from setting bail conditions for defendants charged with high-risk violent felonies like murder, meaning a District or Superior Court judge must evaluate pretrial release during a scheduled court session, according to Cole Williams Law.
How the Case Moves Through Craven County's Courts
Havelock police handled the arrest and initial investigation, consistent with the department's role as the primary municipal law enforcement agency for the city, per the City of Havelock. From here, the case moves to Craven County District Court at the courthouse in New Bern, the county seat, where felony cases originating in Havelock are formally prosecuted, according to the North Carolina Judicial Branch.
North Carolina classifies first-degree murder as a Class A felony carrying a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole or the death penalty upon conviction, per state statute compiled by the North Carolina General Assembly. It remains unclear at this stage whether prosecutors will pursue first- or second-degree murder charges against Graham. Notably, North Carolina's felony murder doctrine allows prosecutors to bring first-degree murder charges in infant death cases where felony child abuse is alleged as the underlying offense, without needing to prove premeditation or deliberation, according to legal analysis from Powers Law Firm PA.
A Military Town Grappling With a Rare Tragedy
Havelock, home to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, is one of the largest municipalities in Craven County, a county of roughly 104,167 residents where children under 18 make up about 20.8% of the population, according to data compiled by USAFacts. Cherry Point itself spans nearly 16,000 acres and stands as the largest industrial employer in eastern North Carolina, supporting more than 8,900 military personnel and over 28,000 active dependents in the surrounding community, per Craven County Government figures.
Cases like Graham's are reviewed within a broader framework of child fatality oversight in North Carolina. The state recorded 770 infant deaths in 2024 as part of a total of 1,386 child deaths among residents ages 0 to 17, according to the North Carolina Child Fatality Task Force. Since July 2025, the state has operated a restructured Child Fatality Prevention System, with a centralized State Office of Child Fatality Prevention supporting multidisciplinary review teams across all 100 counties, according to analysis published by Coates' Canons at UNC's School of Government.
Federal data further shows North Carolina recorded 25,478 child maltreatment victims in fiscal year 2024, up from 23,737 the year before, per figures from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. No additional details about the infant's identity, the specific allegations against Graham, or a determined cause of death have been made public. Court filings and any medical examiner findings are expected to clarify further details as the case proceeds in Craven County District Court.
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