Minister charged in autistic boy's death Ray Anthony Hemphill, shown in this police booking photo, was arrested on suspicion of physical abuse causing death in connection of eight-year-old Terrance Cottrell Jr. (AP Photo/ Milwaukee Police Handout via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) By JULIET WILLIAMS Associated Press Writer MILWAUKEE (AP) - A church minister who prosecutors say pinned an 8-year-old autistic boy as he tried to release demons from the child has been charged in the boy's suffocation death. Ray Hemphill, 45, was charged Tuesday with physical abuse of a child causing great bodily harm. He faces up to 10 years in prison and $25,000 in fines if convicted. The charges stem from a Friday service at the storefront Faith Temple Church of the Apostolic Faith. He remained in jail Tuesday night, and it was not clear if he had an attorney. Hemphill told investigators he laid face-to-face on the boy's chest for about an hour during the service, according to a criminal complaint. The boy's mother, Patricia Cooper, said in the complaint that Hemphill held Terrance down on the ground with one hand on his head, another between his legs, and his knee pressed into the boy's chest. Cooper and another woman each held one of his legs, while a third woman laid across his torso. "(Cooper) stated that while this was going on she could see Ray Hemphill talking to Terrance Cottrell and telling him that the 'Demon should leave him,'" for about two hours, the complaint said. Hemphill said Friday's session started around 7:30 p.m. and was relatively intense. It was hot in the room, which was not air-conditioned, and there were no breaks to get refreshments or go to the bathroom. "He states that when he rose up off Terrance Cottrell both he and Terrance Cottrell's shirts were soaking wet with sweat," the complaint said. Cooper said that when the service ended, the boy was not breathing and his face appeared blue, the complaint said. She said several people tried to revive him, but they finally called 911 around midnight. The boy suffered extensive bruising on the back of his neck and died of suffocation because he couldn't breathe, the complaint said. Although the medical examiner ruled the boy's death a homicide, Milwaukee County District Attorney E. Michael McCann said that charge would have required prosecutors to prove Hemphill knew his actions would likely kill the boy, rather than just hurt him. "He would consciously be aware that what he was doing had a great likelihood of causing death. We did not feel we could prove it," McCann said. He said the fact that the boy died at a religious service made the case more complicated. "Their intent was to help this young man. No one says they set out to hurt this young man," McCann said. Ray Hemphill was still in custody Tuesday, sheriff's officials said. Cooper began taking her son to the church tucked in a run-down strip mall three weeks ago for the special prayer services three times a week, said Bishop David Hemphill, the leader of the church and Ray Hemphill's brother. She would pray with several parishioners for God to release the evil spirits they believed caused the boy's illness, he said. Church members had wrapped the boy in sheets to keep him from scratching himself and others, but he was allowed to sit any way he felt comfortable, he said. David Hemphill's voice mailbox was full when The Associated Press tried to contact him Tuesday. But the church earlier released a statement saying Terrance had taken some strong medication before Friday's service that sometimes caused him to act violent. It offered condolences and prayers to the boy's family. Cooper did not immediately return a phone message from the AP Tuesday, but the complaint said she told investigators her son was very disruptive and had stayed at Children's Hospital because of his behavior problems. Autism is a developmental disability, typically diagnosed during the first three years of life, that affects the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills.