GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A man is charged in the death of a one-year-old boy in Grand Rapids.
Alexander "Xan" Butler died Saturday morning at 50 Weston in downtown Grand Rapids.
He was found with blue lips and not breathing.
His mother, Alissa Butler, says it was her third day at a new job. She left Xan with her now ex-boyfriend Alex Radulovic.
“The whole morning I had this bad feeling like, I want to stay home. Like today’s not the day I should be at work. I should be at home. I should wake up with my son,” Butler said.
Radulovic is charged with first-degree child abuse and felony murder. He faces up to life in prison if convicted.
For Alissa, it's a heartbreaking breach of trust.
"The only thing I want to know is what he did to my kid, and what made him do it,” Butler said.
Alissa says having her son changed everything for her. She was just 17 when she found out she was pregnant. Xan's biological father was never in the picture.
“Finding out I was pregnant changed everything. I used to smoke like two packs a day. The minute I found out I was pregnant, I stopped,” Butler said.
Butler, adding she never thought someone her baby boy referred to as "dad" would ever do something to harm her son.
“I can’t stop thinking and imagining it happening,” Butler said.
The family has set up a GoFundMe to help pay for the baby’s funeral.
