The child’s mother says her son is now blind in both eyes after a traumatic brain injury.
GREENVILLE, S.C. — A Greenville County father remains jailed more than a year after deputies said he admitted kicking his 5-week-old son in the head, leaving the child with a traumatic brain injury and blindness.
Keontae Austin is charged with child abuse resulting in great bodily harm. The child, Khosen, is now 1. His mother, Autumn Miera, said the injury caused lasting damage, including blindness in both eyes. Court records show Austin has sought release from jail, but judges have denied bond.
Miera said she was running errands when Austin called and said Khosen would not stop crying. When she returned home, she said she found the baby bleeding and unresponsive on a bed. Deputies later said Austin admitted kicking the infant in the head. Khosen spent more than a month in the NICU, Miera said, and doctors did not expect him to live through the first day after the injury.
“My son wasn’t supposed to make it 24 hours,” Miera said. She said homicide investigators were present the night Khosen was hurt and questioned why the case was not charged as attempted murder. Officials have not announced any additional charges. The known charge centers on child abuse resulting in great bodily harm.
The injuries cited in the case include a brain injury and eye hemorrhaging. Miera said she recently learned Khosen is blind in both eyes. She said the medical effects will follow him for life. The full long-term impact of the injury remains unknown publicly, and no trial testimony has been presented.
Austin remains in the Greenville County jail. A trial date has not been set. The case remains pending in court, where prosecutors would have to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt if it goes to trial.
Miera said she is still seeking justice for her son as the case moves slowly through court. For now, Khosen’s condition and Austin’s custody status remain the clearest public markers in a case that began with an emergency call and has stretched beyond a year.
Author note: Last updated June 20, 2026.