Babysitting boyfriend/dad arraigned for assault and battery of baby boy (Boston, Massachusetts)

Babysitting boyfriend (and possible dad--he appears to be the father of one other child in the household) CHRISTOPHER DUNCAN is suspected of breaking two bones and seven ribs of an infant boy. Dad was watching the baby while Mom was away, and doesn't have a consistent story as to how the injuries occurred.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/08/06/hyde_park_mothers_boyfriend_charged_in_infants_injuries/


Hyde Park mother’s boyfriend is charged in infant’s injuries
By Brian R. Ballou
Globe Staff / August 6, 2009

Puzzled by her infant son’s incessant crying, a Hyde Park woman decided to have her child evaluated early last month at Boston Medical Center.

It did not take long for doctors to find out that the child had two broken bones in his leg and seven broken ribs.

It also did not take long for authorities to suspect that the mother’s boyfriend, Christopher Duncan may have inflicted those injuries.

Yesterday Duncan was arraigned in West Roxbury District Court on charges of assault and battery on a child and mayhem. The 27-year-old defendant pleaded not guilty through his attorney, William Concannon, and was ordered held on $25,000 cash bail.

According to a police report, Duncan gave conflicting accounts of how the baby may have injured himself July 8 while he was caring for the child and the mother was not at home.

The report said Duncan initially told a doctor that he placed the baby on a bed and that the baby rolled and fell onto the hardwood floor in a manner that caused his legs to bend in an awkward position.

Duncan also told doctors that the baby hit his head, but in a subsequent conversation said he was not in the room when the baby fell and did not know whether he hit his head, the report said.
Doctors indicated that the child’s injuries could not have come from such an incident, the report stated.

The police report states that after the staff at Boston Medical Center alerted police, Duncan asked when they would arrive and said, “Do you think that this story works?’’

Prosecutors said that Duncan inflicted the injuries over time. An investigation followed the hospital visit, which resulted in police obtaining a warrant for Duncan’s arrest Monday.
It is unclear whether Duncan is the biological father of the injured child, according to the police report.

The baby, along with the couple’s 17-month-old child, is in the custody of the maternal grandmother, said Jake Wark, a spokesman for the district attorney.

“If you have a crying baby and you find yourself losing patience, please take a few minutes to cool down,’’ Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement.

Prosecutors said parents who are feeling stressed can call the Massachusetts Parental Stress Line at 800-632-8188 or find help at http://www.onetoughjob.org/.

Anyone who suspects child abuse can call the DCF Child at Risk Hotline at 1-800-792-5200.

Concannon said late yesterday afternoon that he no longer represents Duncan and was unsure if the defendant had secured legal counsel.