Custodial dad, girlfriend plead no contest in abuse of 10-month-old son with fractured skull; what happened to the mother of this baby? (Columbus, Nebraska)

Once again, we see the convoluted way the media disguises a father's custodial status.

Notice that your have to read six paragraphs down to find out that JUAN TREJO is the biological father while the woman in question is not the biological mother.

Then you have to skip back to the first paragraph to find out that this abuse took place over two months, so it was not something that just happened over weekend visitation. Ergo, Daddy must have been custodial.

Notice that the baby is now in foster care. And it apparently doesn't even OCCUR to this reporter to find out what happened to this baby's mother! Or how and why she lost custody. Or what judge may have been responsible for this outrage.

http://columbustelegram.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/columbus-couple-admit-physical-abuse-of-baby/article_ab553ed6-6d2e-517b-be37-3f28c7336ef2.html

Columbus couple admit physical abuse of baby

3 hours ago • By Jim Osborn

COLUMBUS – A Columbus couple admitted their roles in abusing a 10-month-old boy over a two-month period this spring that eventually sent the baby to the hospital with a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain.

Defendant Juan Trejo pleaded no contest to felony child abuse in connection with an April 22 incident in which the 22-year-old defendant admitted fracturing his son’s skull in multiple places after throwing him to the floor when the baby became fussy and wouldn’t stop crying.

Trejo entered his plea in Platte County District Court in exchange for the prosecution dismissed two similar abuse charges. The defendant was convicted of a Class II felony, which carries a maximum penalty of up to 50 years in prison.

Trejo’s fiancée, Julie Staroscik, 22, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor child abuse in county court. The Class I misdemeanor has a maximum sentence of up to a year in prison.

District Judge Robert Steinke scheduled Trejo for sentencing Aug. 15. Staroscik is set for sentencing in county court on Aug. 25.

Trejo, who is the boy’s biological father, has remained in custody at the Platte County Detention Facility since his April 22 arrest. Staroscik, who is not the boy’s biological mother, has been free on bond since late April.

The victim, who turned 1 year old about a month ago, has been placed in foster care after being treated in an Omaha hospital for multiple bone fractures.

Trejo and Staroscik are the biological parents of four other children who were in the home at the time of the April 22 incident. Police said those children showed no evidence of abuse.

The boy, who is recovering from his injuries, was transported to Children’s Hospital in Omaha where a bone survey by Dr. Suzanne Haney revealed about 20 fractures to the skull, ribs, both arms and both legs in different stages of healing. The doctor said the bone breaks ranged from about a week old to not more than a couple of months old.

Columbus Police Investigator Bret Strecker said Trejo admitted causing the April 22 injuries to his son when the boy was “crying and screaming and would not stop.”

The defendant said he became frustrated and threw the boy to the ground, Strecker said in a sworn statement supporting the defendant’s arrest.

“He said that he was holding (his son) in his hands while he was standing up,” Strecker said. “He raised him a bit and then slammed him to the floor of the residence.”

Trejo denied abusing his son at any other time, Strecker said. Staroscik denied knowledge of any of the boy's injuries.