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Treadmill dad Christopher Gregor found GUILTY of aggravated manslaughter for son he 'abused to death'
A mother broke down in court as the father of her six-year-old son was found guilty of his manslaughter, after beating and abusing him for months before he died.
Christopher Gregor, 31, was found guilty following a four-week trial where jurors heard from witnesses over what led to the death of Corey Micciolo in 2021.
As the guilty verdict was read out, Corey's mom Breanna Micciolo broke down in tears while Gregor stared at the ground.
Part of that trial including surveillance footage showing Gregor increasing the speed and incline on a treadmill, causing Micciolo to fall several times.
The little boy died weeks later, and Gregor's legal team insists he died of infection despite medical experts' findings that he suffered blunt force trauma.
The jury rejected a murder charge but instead convicted him on a lesser charge of aggravated manslaughter, which comes with 10 to 30 years behind bars.
Gregor reacts as the jury reads the guilty verdict to aggravated manslaughter on Friday
Micciolo died on April 2, 2021, after complaining of nausea and shortness of breath. He suffered several seizures upon arriving at the hospital and died an hour later
Micciolo's mother Breanna Micciolo cried as Gregor was found guilty of aggravated manslaughter of their son
Gregor had originally only been charged with child endangerment in relation to the surveillance video.
It wasn't until almost a year after his son died that he was formally charged with murder after the medical examiner initially ruled the death to be undetermined.
According to the Ashbury Park Press, the autopsy report was later amended and listed the death as a homicide.
Defense attorney Mario Gallucci had argued that he died of natural causes, specifically a 'rapidly spreading infection,' and previously asserted that he came down with pneumonia.
But his allegations draw a stark contrast to the testimony of a forensic pathologist who spoke on the fifth day of the trial.
According to Dr. Thomas Andrew, Corey died from blunt impact injury of the chest and abdomen with laceration of the heart. Andrew testified that the manner of death was homicide.
Another doctor, Anat Feingold, was called as a witness on May 22 after being hired by the prosecution to review medical records.
Feingold, who specializes in pediatric infectious diseases, said there was no evidence that Corey had suffered from an infection before his death.
'My conclusion was there was no evidence that Corey had an infectious disease at any point, and certainly that that was not the cause of his death,' Feingold said.
Closing arguments began on Wednesday after Gregor declined to testify in his own defense.
Gregor's attorney asserted that prosecutors failed to present any witnesses or experts who could prove the boy died in the way medical officials maintain.
Mentions of the treadmill video cropped up frequently throughout the proceedings.
'What kind of father would do this to their son?' asked Christine Lento, an assistant Ocean County prosecutor. She noted that Gregor could be seen increasing the incline on the machine.
Micciolo broke down in tears while Gregor stared at the ground as the verdict was read out
The case drew national interest after video surfaced of Gregor forcing the six-year-old to run on a treadmill, even picking him up and placing him back on the machine after he fell
Gregor's defense attorney, Mario Gallucci, claimed the little boy 'died from natural causes,' specifically 'a rapidly-spreading infection'
Gallucci, in turn, claimed that Corey was 'operating that treadmill all by himself,' noting that he 'kept getting back up on the treadmill.'
However, Lento countered that Corey was 'more afraid of his father than getting back on that machine.'
The prosecutor asserted that Corey did not die of infection.
'It's not pneumonia,' Lento said. 'The defendant lacerated Corey's heart, lacerated his liver, and Corey's lungs were bruised. This is why Corey died.'
Gregor and Breanna shared custody of the six-year-old before his death. Lento claimed Gregor inflicted blunt force trauma on the little boy because his mother returned him to Gregor's house 14 hours late.
One day earlier, Micciolo had taken Corey to his pediatrician and two different medical centers, believing Gregor was abusing him.
None of the physicians found any infection or signs of pneumonia, Lento said.
'The evidence shows there was nothing wrong with Corey when he was returned to the defendant at 9 am on April 2, eight hours before Corey died,' she asserted.
On the morning of April 2, 2021, Micciolo dropped Corey off at Gregor's home. It would be the last time she saw her son alive.
Breanna Micciolo, pictured testifying on April 30, took the little boy to a pediatrician and two different medical centers shortly before his death on the belief that Gregor was abusing him
Corey's mother shared sickening images of the abuse she claims was inflicted by the father to social media, including black eyes and bruises across his body
She claimed to have reported Gregor to the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency more than 100 times in a span of 18 months, but nothing was done. She has since sued the agency for failing to act
Micciolo's bid for emergency custody of her son was denied the day before Corey's death on the advice of DCCP, despite at least one caseworker viewing the treadmill video and photographing injuries on Corey's body
On the morning of April 2, 2021, Micciolo dropped Corey off at Gregor's home. It would be the last time she saw her son alive.
The woman told police she last heard from Gregor that afternoon, when told her that he was taking Corey to the hospital but didn't mention which one.
The little boy had complained of nausea and shortness of breath, according to a probable cause affidavit. He suffered seizures soon after arriving at Southern Ocean Medical Center and died an hour later.
Surveillance footage captured nurses and a doctor appearing to comfort Gregor as he collapsed in a chair outside his son's hospital room.
But he left 27 minutes before Corey died, as Lento pointed out in court. 'He casually gets in his car and drives away without hesitation,' she said.
On the morning of April 2, 2021, Micciolo dropped Corey off at Gregor's home. It would be the last time she saw her son alive
Police caught up the 32-year-old in Alcoa, Tennessee, two days after Corey's death. Gregor had been speeding, and one officer noted in bodycam footage that he was 'shaking like a leaf.'
Gregor denied trying to cross the border, instead telling officers that he had turned around in Arkansas and was heading home.
He said he had driven for 20 hours straight and made it to somewhere near the Arkansas-Texas state line before turning and traveling another five hours to Nashville.
Gregor also made comments about Corey, saying, 'If he didn't have a drug-addicted mother, then he'd still be alive.'
Gregor then indicated that Micciolo was somehow linked to Corey's death.
'When he got home, I knew something was wrong in my gut,' Gregor said.
He referred to Micciolo as 'a special kind of dirtbag' and accused the woman and her family of planting marijuana on him once before, leading to a prior arrest in New Jersey.
At the time of Corey's death, the boy’s mother and Gregor shared joint custody. Micciolo said she reported Gregor to the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency over 100 times in a span of 18 months, but no action was taken.
She has since sued the agency for failing to act in time to save her son's life.
When Micciolo brought Corey to his pediatrician the day before his death, she did so at the suggestion of a DCPP caseworker. Corey told the doctor about the treadmill incident, and his account was later relayed to police.
In the footage, officers can be seen searching him as Gregor agrees to allow officers to search his vehicle
According to the affidavit, Gregor 'made him run on the treadmill really fast' because he was 'mad.' The document notes that Corey mentioned falling and hitting his head.
At least one DCPP caseworker viewed the video. The same caseworker saw and photographed Corey's injuries before Micciolo requested an emergency hearing the day before her son died.
However, a judge denied Micciolo's request for emergency custody on the advice of the agency.
DCPP eventually substantiated two of the allegations of abuse. That development came last December, 20 months after Corey's death.
Gregor only entered the boy's life when he was five-years-old, and on their first meeting, Corey allegedly returned home to his mother with a 'busted lip', according to Jersey Shore Online.
Micciolo didn't believe Gregor's excuse that he accidentally kicked their son while playing soccer, but said a DCPP caseworker accepted it and didn't investigate.
For over a year after that first meeting, she claims that Corey was routinely abused by Gregor, and reportedly suspected the father was using as treadmill as a punishment tool during their visitations.
During that time, his LinkedIn profile says he worked as a realtor and math teacher, with his past work experience also including volunteering at mental health hotline Crisis Text Line for six months in 2015.
Before his arrest, Gregor lived at a sprawling New Jersey estate valued at over $1 million, online records show.