Man arrested on battery charge for injuries to 4-year-old son
A local man was arrested Friday morning on a felony warrant stemming from injuries he allegedly caused to his 4-yearold son while disciplining him last month.
Joshua Hare Turner, 29, who lists a Somerset Court address, was taken into custody at 9 a.m. and charged with second-degree domestic battery, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
According to the report, on
April 10, a local woman filed a report with Hot Springs police after she noticed injuries to the face and buttocks of her 4-year-old son after he returned from visiting his father, identified as Turner. HSPD Officer Jonathan Langford, who took the initial report, confirmed the bruising to the boy’s left facial cheek and buttocks.
On April 12, the woman provided HSPD Detective Kenny May with photos of the victim that showed large amounts of bruising on both sides of his buttocks and redness and scrapes on the left facial cheek. The injuries to the buttocks were consistent with being struck with a belt, as they were long and appeared to wrap around his buttocks.
On April 17, Turner voluntarily came to the police department to view the photos and allegedly admitted to causing the injuries by striking his son with a belt on his bare buttocks, after he urinated on himself in the family vehicle. Turner said he did not purposely cause the injuries, but he knew when he was striking the child it would leave marks.
Turner’s girlfriend also told police she observed Turner striking the child’s bare buttocks.
Turner was later released on
$3,500 bond and is set to appear May 16 in Garland County District Court.
• A local woman was arrested Saturday after she allegedly left her two children unattended inside a hot car outside Wal-Mart.
Terri Dannielle Young, 29, who lists a Mary Drive address, was taken into custody shortly before 4 p.m. at Wal-Mart, 1601
Albert Pike, and charged with two counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a minor, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail. She was later released on $2,000 bond and is set to appear May 16 in district court.
According to the affidavit, HSPD Officer Hunter Scott responded to the Wal-Mart parking lot just after 3:30 p.m. in reference to a welfare check. An asset protection associate for Wal-Mart told Scott that two children, a 6-year-old boy and 1-year-old girl, had been left unattended in a vehicle on the premises for approximately 25 minutes.
Officers were directed to a Toyota Camry, but when they ran the plate it came back to a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Several bystanders had gathered around the vehicle, and were able to get in the locked vehicle through an open window. One witness stated she had been standing with the vehicle for at least 20 minutes.
Young was paged inside the store and came outside to the vehicle. She told police she left the children in the car with their father while she went inside the store.
A short time later, the children’s father arrived on scene and told officers he got out of the vehicle first and left the children in Young’s care.