Dad gets prison for assaulting 2-week-old son (Scranton, Pennsylvania)

Dad is identified as DONALD DINNING.

http://wnep.com/2014/03/19/father-of-shaken-infant-sent-to-prison/

Father Of Shaken Infant Sent To Prison

Posted on: 5:27 pm, March 19, 2014, by Stacy Lange

SCRANTON — A father of four from Lackawanna County was sent to prison for shaking his youngest son so hard he spent weeks in the hospital.

Donald Dinning of Mayfield heard his sentence in court Wednesday morning.

It happened in the fall of 2012, when Donald Dinning’s son Evan was only 2 weeks old. Evan has since recovered from his serious injuries and family members say he is developing well but his father was sent to prison for shaking him when he was an infant.

Dinning was arrested in November of 2012. He went to trial late last year and was acquitted of the most serious charge against him. He was convicted of assault and endangering the welfare of a child for shaking his son Evan at their family’s home in Mayfield.

On Wednesday, a judge sentenced Dinning to three months in the Lackawanna County Prison, followed by three months of house arrest and nine and a half years of probation.

Prosecutors hope the sentence works as a deterrent for other parents.

“If parents feel overwhelmed or need help, we would much rather get in front of a problem like this than have to be here dealing with the sentencing,” said Lackawanna County Deputy A.D.A. Jen McCambridge.

The judge decided at sentencing that Dinning would receive credit for the time he’s already served in prison, meaning he will stay at the Lackawanna County Prison for about two months.