Father Charged For Allegedly Breaking Infant's Ribs, Causing 'Significant Bruising'
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MOUNT OLIVER (KDKA) -- A Mt. Oliver man is facing charges for allegedly breaking his baby's ribs.
On Friday, police arrested 21-year-old Jeremia Scales. The next step for him is arraignment at Pittsburgh Municipal Court on charges that include aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a child.
Police said the victim in this case is Scales' 3-month-old son. County detectives said the investigation began on Aug. 15, 2017, when Children's Hospital reported to them a case of suspected child abuse.
"It helps when a doctor's opinion is whether or not the case involves child abuse, or whether or not it could be considered an accident," said Sgt. Ken Ruckel, of the Allegheny County Police Department.
According to police, Scales allegedly told doctors he accidentally burned his baby in the bathtub.
However, police said doctors told them the baby's skin was not burned.
"In this case here, the doctors deemed the injuries to be bruises, not burns," said Sgt. Ruckel.
According to police, the doctors reported that the baby's body had "inflicted trauma." Some of his ribs were cracked and he had "significant bruising" on his lower torso and buttocks.
"The child is doing fine today and the child is at home with his mother," said Sgt. Ruckel.
Police told KDKA that while Scales lives in Mt. Oliver, they believe the incident happened in Bellevue.
"Right now, the father is not in the picture and hasn't had contact with the child since this incident," said Sgt. Ruckel.
According to detectives, when they spoke with Scales, he said he had not seen his son since July 25, 2017, because of a CYF investigation.
