By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – Prosecutors yesterday filed two charges of second-degree child assault against the boyfriend of the mother of a 4-year-old boy who was brought to the hospital over the weekend with various injuries including bruises on the outsides of his legs he said he got from “knife hand” spankings.
[1]Ryon T. Connery
Ryon T. Connery, 31, was arrested after a deputy on Saturday spoke with the child and his grandparents at Providence Centralia Hospital and then his mother and Connery at the Winlock area home.
The boy had been brought to the emergency room to be looked at after he was dropped off at his great grandmother’s house that morning.
Connery went before a judge in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday, where he was ordered held on $75,000 bail and prosecutors were given two more days to file charges. At the time, the defense attorney said the boy was currently with his other parent.
He was brought before a judge again yesterday when the charges were filed.
The offense carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
According to charging documents, the boy said he got spanked because he had been breaking “house rules”, including stealing food.
The documents allege the following was learned by the investigating deputy:
The child explained the rug burn on his nose came from when he fell on his face trying to get away from a spanking, an abrasion on his face happened when Connery hit him on the leg and it knocked him over so that he struck his face on the floor.
The child’s mother admitted her son had been made to do wall squats, push ups and being sprayed by a hose at the same time and she knew he’d dropped a weight on his finger – which was broken. She told the deputy the scrapes on his face were from falling down.
But she denied the child was dunked in the outdoor pool and was not aware of the injuries on his chest and back.
When asked what his mother did while he was getting punished, the boy told the deputy she would just watch.
The youngster also had swollen ankle that appeared to have been burned or infected.
The sheriff’s office says the mother and Connery live near Winlock. A document in the court file indicates a Chehalis address for Connery.
The mother said she and Connery have been in a dating relationship about four months.
Connery is represented by Centralia lawyer David Arcuri.
His arraignment was scheduled for today.