BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) -- A Baton Rouge father accused of beating his 5-year-old daughter to death now faces a first-degree murder charge. Court records show a grand jury upgraded the charge on April 9. Aaron Hawkins, 26, was originally indicted in June 2022 for charges of second-degr ee murder and second-degree cruelty after the death of his daughter, Summer. The child was taken to a local hospital on April 6, 2022, after being found unresponsive, to treat her injuries. Bruising was reportedly found on her body by hospital staff. According to an affidavit, a witness told investigators Hawkins struck the child with a belt as a way to discipline her. Hawkins was arrested and initially charged with cruelty to a juvenile, but the charge was upgraded to first-degree murder after the death was ruled as a homicide. Woman found dead in Baton Rouge home after attack, police say Latest News Judge rules against parents who wore wristbands to protest transgender student athlete White House on tariff deal with Beijing: 'The ball is in China's court' Who is Cody Allen Balmer, man accused of attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's home? White House: Abrego Garcia deportation to El Salvador 'always going to be end result' Man allegedly held captive by stepmother in Connecticut releases first public statement ...read more read less