Attorney: Man accused of killing 15-month-old boy likely to take plea deal

Michael Curtiss

The 34-year-old Ypsilanti Township man accused of killing a 15-month-old boy while baby-sitting will probably take a plea deal before the case goes to trial, his attorney said during a court hearing Tuesday.

Michael Curtiss appeared briefly before Judge Donald Shelton where his attorney asked that the pretrial hearing be adjourned one week

"We do believe at that time this matter will be resolved," said Lorne Brown, of the Washtenaw County Public Defender's Office, hinting that a plea deal is in the works.

Shelton granted the request and another final pretrial hearing was scheduled for March 26. If no deal is reach, a trial is set to begin April 15.

Curtiss is accused of pushing Chase Miller into a TV stand while baby-sitting for the boy last October. Miller suffered blunt force trauma to the head and died. The 15-month-old was the son of Curtiss' girlfriend, who was working at the time. Curtiss was snorting heroin the night of the incident, according to court testimony.

Curtiss is charged with open murder, first-degree child abuse and possession of less than 25 grams of heroin. He remains held in the Washtenaw County Jail without bond.

John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.