Lorain man pleads guilty in child's death; trial averted (UPDATED)

ELYRIA — A Lorain man will spend the next 15 years in prison for the 2018 beating death of a 3-year-old child after reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors Wednesday. Walter Martin, 31, pleaded guilty to an amended indictment and was sentenced by Lorain County Common Pleas Judge John Miraldi to 11 years for involuntary manslaughter and four years for endangering children in the death of X'zayvian Harris on Feb. 6, 2018. Martin also was sentenced to 90 days for a misdemeanor charge of obstructing official business, which will run concurrent to the prison sentence, and will be subject to between two and five years of post-release control. A murder charge was dismissed as part of the plea agreement. A second charge of endangering children and a felonious assault charge were merged with the involuntary manslaughter sentence. Due to a previous felony conviction, Martin will not be eligible for early release, Miraldi added. Assistant Lorain County Prosecutor Laura Dezort told the court the plea agreement comes after extensive discussions with X'zayvian's mother. "I just want to point out that X'zayvian was only 3 years old when he died and it's a very difficult case, a very challenging situation and just absolutely tragic. We got to spend a lot of time with his mom and we've spent a lot of time in the resolution of this matter. It's a very difficult resolution to reach, but we would ask that the court go ahead and honor the agreement and impose the 15-year mandatory sentence," Dezort said. Martin declined to address the court during sentencing. But as he was being led away, he acknowledged his family, saying "I love you all." X'zayvian died at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland after being assaulted the month before in Lorain. He was removed from life support and died several hours later, The Chronicle-Telegram reported at the time. After an autopsy, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office ruled that his cause of death was "blunt impacts to head, trunk and extremities" and he suffered brain injuries. His manner of death was classified a homicide. Lorain police said officers had been called to Mercy Health Hospital's emergency department, prior to X'zayvian being transported to Cleveland for treatment, for a report of suspicious injuries to the child. X'zayvian's mother brought him to the hospital after telling a 911 dispatcher that she had found him unresponsive after his brother, 1, pushed him over a diaper box. Hospital staff called the police because the boy's injuries didn't match the mother's story, Lorain police told The Chronicle at the time. Martin was indicted by a Lorain County grand jury in September 2020, according to court records. Contact Kevin Martin at kmartin@chroniclet.com.