VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A U.S. Navy veteran has been sentenced to 8 years in prison for the death of his 8-week-old son.

The Virginian-Pilot reports 24-year-old Deandre Routt has pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and child abuse for the 2015 death of J’dyn, who suffered numerous fractures and died that June.

Routt told his wife then that J’dyn fell off a sofa. He later told police J’dyn was dropped.

A doctor who treated J’dyn testified the injuries were consistent with violent shaking.

Another doctor, pediatrician and child abuse expert Michelle Clayton, testified Wednesday that J’dyn’s severe brain damage and skull and rib fractures couldn’t be attributed to a fall.

Routt was initially charged with second-degree murder, but prosecutors say the charges were downgraded because his wife refused to cooperate with authorities.

Routt had never been in criminal trouble before, was 20 years old, serving in the Navy, and living with his wife and newborn son at the time of the incident, according to the Virginian-Pilot.

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