A Layton man was booked into jail on suspicion of child abuse after police said he choked out his 10-year-old son using a football jersey on Friday, causing the child’s face to turn blue.
The 33-year-old man was hosting a sleepover party for several children, including his 10- and 11-year-old sons, Layton police Lt. Travis Lyman said. The boys got into a wrestling match, with the 11-year-old placing his little brother in a headlock he couldn’t escape.
The father then intervened, Lyman said, and became upset that the 10-year-old had been unable to escape the headlock — a skill the man had apparently taught his sons.
Lyman said the father then put the 10-year-old in a headlock himself, and when the boy couldn’t escape that, he put the football jersey around his son’s neck. It choked the boy until his “face changed color and he was struggling to breathe,” according to a police report.
Other children at the sleepover were “pretty concerned” about the situation and told their parents, who reported it to police, Lyman said. The police report said the man admitted to placing the jersey around the boy‘s neck and choking him with it.
The man was booked into the Davis County jail and was listed on a jail roster Tuesday night.