Kamal Ghorui
A Texas oil heir has been ordered to pay a historic $1.1 billion to the young child he brutally beat, leaving him with severe injuries that require 24-hour care.34-year-old Charles Brooks Jr. will pay $291 million in compensatory damages and $810 million in punitive damages following a civil jury ruling in favour of Madison Ball, his ex-wife, and her son Stephen Sampson. The child is seven years old. He was awarded $800 million, while his parents will each receive $5 million. The verdict is the largest in US history for the assault of a child.Brooks is the great-grandson of Humble Oil founding investor Percy Turner and is already serving a 40-year prison sentence for the attack, which left his stepson bedridden and reliant on a tracheostomy tube, wheelchair and a breathing machine. The boy cannot walk and will need full-time care for the rest of his life.The attack occurred on April 22, 2021, while the kid’s mother was at work. Brooks was supposed to babysit the two-year-old and called his wife, claiming the child was “non-responsive” after falling off a kitchen table during a visit to Brooks’ grandmother in Dallas.The mother, Ball, demanded to see her son over video call and saw her toddler “barely breathing” while Brooks ignored her pleas to call 911. Brooks did not take the severity of the injuries seriously and insisted the child would “sleep it off” and had been placed in an ice bath. He also threatened Ball, saying he would “snap her neck” and “f–king kill her” if she contacted emergency services.Ball ignored the threats and called 911. First responders discovered that the child was severely beaten, unresponsive, and had adult bite marks on his legs. He sustained a traumatic brain injury, chronic respiratory failure, seizure disorder, urethral trauma, and traumatic haemorrhage of both retinas, according to court records. The court petition read: “(The child’s) life is a fraction of what it once was, and he will never grow into the strong, healthy, happy boy he should have because of Brooks’ terrible, violent, horrific behaviour.”Lawyer Tony Buzbee, representing Ball and her son, said, “We claim to value children in our society. This Texas jury stepped up and showed that. Don’t mess with Texas children. I hope that through this verdict this precious child gets all the care he will need and hopefully make his life as good as it can be made under the circumstances.”Brooks has a history of criminal convictions, including theft, aggravated robbery, gun charges, and drug possession. After the assault, he attempted to flee by cutting off his ankle monitor and was later found at a bar in South Texas. He is currently booked in San Saba County Jail and is eligible for parole in 2042, with a projected release date of January 30, 2062.This ruling marks one of the largest civil awards ever issued in a child abuse case in US.
