BOZEMAN — A Bozeman man could face up to 20 years in prison after being charged with negligent homicide after his 6-month-old son was found limp in his crib.
Vincent Garbe appeared in Gallatin County Justice court Friday morning where a judge set his bail at $50,000.
Garbe was also orderws to have no contact with the child’s mother, have no weapons and consume no alcohol.
He also was ordered to have no contact with children under the age of 18.
According to court documents, Bozeman police officiers responded to a home on Saxon Way for a report of a limp unconscious child on Thursday.
Emergency personnel immediately started CPR on the infant.
Detectives say Garbe was sitting on the floor next to the child and told police he was the boy’s father.
Detectives spoke with Garbe and learned from him that he was forbidden from being in contact with the child by Child Protective Services after an incident five months ago.
During that incident, Garbe consumed alcohol and fell with or upon the child, fracturing his neck.
Garbe was charged with negligent endangerment for that incident.
Garbe told investigators that when he did not hear the child “all morning,” he went to check on the child to discover him face down and limp.
Bozeman Police performed a safety sweep on the residence and found several glass bongs, commonly used to ingest marijuana, lying on the floor of the a bedroom.
Garbe later told investigators that he smoked marijuana to help him sleep and that “it’s possible” that he may have had an altered mental state a few hours earlier.
