WHITLEY COUNTY, Ky. (WKYT) - A family is making plans to bury a father of three after he died from injuries suffered in a beating.

Samuel Plotnick, 35, is charged with murder for the attack on Jimmie Peace three weeks ago in Whitley County.

Peace's family didn't realize the extent of his injuries from the alleged assault until it was too late.

"I just thought it was just a more or less he got in a fight," said Peace's stepfather, Harold Bowlin. "My little boy would tell me, he said, Dad's sleeping. I just called every day and checked and finally he called me said he's on the floor, I can't get him up."

According to Bowlin, the night Peace was injured he'd been hanging out with his friend and the friend's boyfriend. The boyfriend was Plotnick.

He says Plotnick and the girlfriend got into a fight.

"Had her down on the floor and Jimmie was trying to break up the fight and he had told her to go hide," said Bowlin. "And that's when he started beating on Jimmie."

Whitley County Sheriff Colan Harrell says Peace was at first treated and released from a local hospital.

"They thought he was okay," Sheriff Harrell explained, "he went on and in a couple of days, he started having more pain, started discoloring and he sought more medical help."

Peace died late Wednesday night at UK Hospital.

"He was a decent guy," said Bowlin.

Plotnick's case will be heard by a grand jury on January 7.