A man accused

of killing his 5-year-old son in 2013 will got to trial next week, a judge in Orange County rules.

A man accused of killing his 5-year-old son in 2013 will got to trial next week, a judge in Orange County ruled Monday.

Darell Avant Sr., now 31, is accused of beating Darell Avant Jr. to death nearly five years ago. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

Avant was in court Monday when his attorneys asked Circuit Judge Jenifer Harris for more time to prepare, talk to witnesses, and have a doctor evaluate the older Avant for evidence of a brain injury. Harris denied the motion and said jury selection will start June 18.

Defense attorneys particularly wanted to ask the child’s mother and the medical examiner in the case about possible older injuries on Darell Avant Jr.’s body, which prosecutors may present to jurors as evidence of ongoing violence.

“This is the critical issue in this case,” defense attorney F. Wesley “Buck” Blankner Jr. told Harris. “Did my client cause these injuries to his child or was it someone else?”

Avant picked his son up from Pershing Elementary School the morning of Dec. 18, 2013. The boy was acting up in school, Avant later told deputies.

Avant told deputies he made his son do push-ups and squats for about 20 minutes as punishment, court records show. The boy told him he was hot and his feet hurt, so Avant told him to go take a shower. The boy got out of the shower, started getting dressed again, and collapsed, Avant told deputies.

Avant tried waking his son up and called a friend, who came over, started doing CPR, and told Avant to call 911. The boy was pronounced dead at the apartment.

A medical examiner found bruises and injuries on the child’s arms, torso, and back, court records show. His death was ruled a homicide by blunt force trauma.