News

Actions

Man accused of killing, sexually assaulting 8-month-old to be released

Posted at 10:43 PM, Apr 27, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-28 13:59:48-04

James Saltmarshall II is still behind bars, but he won't be for long.

His pending release has even outraged his mother.

Saltmarshall, who wept uncontrollably during his last court appearance, will soon be a free man.

Prosecutors say they need more time to investigate and gather forensic evidence. So the judge is releasing Saltmarshall on his own recognizance.

Even his mother who spoke exclusively with 7 Action News doesn't agree with that decision.

Saltmarshall was staying in an Inkster motel with the baby. He called 911 last week to say she fell, hit her head, and wasn't breathing.

Investigators say she had injuries consistent with a sexual assault.

“At times we create monsters and I may have created one of those monsters,” his mother says.

Saltmarshall says her granddaughter's mother, who has not been charged, was also staying in the same room.

She was at work when Saltmarshall called for help and has since defended him on social media.
“I'm not understanding the Bonnie and Clyde relationship,” Saltmarshall’s mother says. “I don't understand it. And I think that both of them should be held.”

Saltmarshall's father declined to speak on camera but confirmed his son will be released with a GPS tether.

Saltmarshall must also avoid contact with children.

His mother warns those conditions won't keep her son out of trouble.

“If you tell him to go right he's going to go left,” she says. “He's not going to follow those rules.”

It could take a few days for the Wayne County Sheriff's Office to issue Saltmarshall's GPS tether.

Should he violate any of the conditions of his release, he will be put back behind bars and held on a two million dollar bond.