Jail term for American Fork foster dad for infant abuse case
Jail term for American Fork foster dad for infant abuse case
Kristin Owens
The Salt Lake Tribune
10 October, 2008
An American Fork foster father convicted of child abuse was sentenced Thursday to 100 days in jail for causing brain injury to a 1-year-old baby.
James Ryan Hadlock, 36, pleaded guilty last month to two counts of misdemeanor child abuse, one for the incident that led to the baby's hospitalization in Dec. 2006.
Defense attorney Gary Weight told a 4th District Court judge the baby was injured when Hadlock threw him up in the air, almost to the ceiling, and accidentally let him fall about nine feet to a concrete floor covered with carpet.
The baby appeared to be fine and was not seen by a doctor until he stopped breathing several days later, Weight said.
At that point, Baby Andrew was airlifted to Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City, where doctors said an MRI showed bleeding in the brain and evidence of similar bleeding in the past.
Now almost 3 years old and adopted by an out-of-state family, Baby Andrew has had difficulty learning to walk and talk, said prosecutor Donna Kelly. He has also had surgery on his eyes, which don't focus well, she said.
It is not yet apparent how much cognitive damage may have resulted from his brain injury, Kelly said.
Hadlock's ex-wife, Gaylyne Hadlock, testified that she did not believe Hadlock had accidentally dropped their foster child.
"I have witnessed and been a victim of his violent behavior in the past -- it can be very erratic," she said.
Because some doctors said the baby's injuries could have been caused by a fall like the one Hadlock described, prosecutors agreed to reduce the charges from second-degree felonies to Class A misdemeanors, avoiding the risk of a full acquittal at trial.
Prosecutor Donna Kelly reminded Judge Gary Stott that there were two counts of child abuse because Hadlock had also pleaded guilty to causing bone fractures in Baby Andrew about a month before the brain injury.
"It's hard to know where the truth really falls," said Stott. "But there is one truth that can't be ignored, and that truth is that a little boy was severely injured as a result of the conduct of Mr. Hadlock. What that conduct was, I don't know."
With prosecutors asking for 90 days in jail and a recommendation of only 20 days from case reviewers at Adult Probation and Parole, Stott sentenced Hadlock to 100 days in jail, two years of probation and a $790 fine, with an order to comply with any anger management classes required by probation officers.
Gaylyne Hadlock said she has concerns for the safety of the 5-year-old son she has with Hadlock, as Hadlock currently has unsupervised visitation rights.
A successful civil suit brought against Hadlock in behalf of Baby Andrew covered the cost of the baby's medical care and set up a trust for future medical expenses.
Stott gave the state six weeks to determine if they will make any claims for monetary restitution in the criminal case.
shunt@sltrib.com