Dad sentenced to 18 months for assaulting his 2-month-old son (Waterville, Washington)

Dad is identified as ANDREW PACO LOPEZ.

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2012/may/09/18-months-in-child-assault-case/

18 months in child-assault case
By Jefferson Robbins
World staff writer

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

WATERVILLE — The father of a baby injured by abuse was sentenced to 18 months in jail for harming the child.

Andrew Paco Lopez, 27, of East Wenatchee pleaded guilty April 30 to third-degree child assault for injuring his 2-month-old-son. He entered an Alford plea in the case, meaning he maintained his innocence but agreed enough evidence existed to convict him at trial.

Lopez was originally charged with first-degree assault of a child after Douglas County sheriff’s detectives accused him of improperly handling the child on Sept. 27, 2011, leading to broken ribs and bleeding on the brain.

Lopez said he held the child under both arms and moved him back and forth after the boy went rigid and unresponsive, according to sheriff’s reports. He said he then ran with the child to alert his wife, leaving the boy’s head unsupported as he ran.

The baby was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he was treated for rib fractures and a brain hemorrhage.

Lopez is barred from contact with his son for five years, and barred from unsupervised contact with children under 10 during his one-year probation after jail.