ELIZABETHVILLE - A man and woman charged with abusing and injuring their infant child earlier this year waived their right to preliminary hearings Tuesday morning.
Brett J. Bohner, 19, and Chelsea Mari Cormack, 18, both of 237 E. Spruce St., Williamstown, are charged with one felony count each of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children.
Appearing before Dauphin County Magisterial District Judge Rebecca Margerum, Bohner and Cormack, through their attorneys, chose to have the charges against them heard in Dauphin County Court.
Cormack is free after a bail bondsman posted $150,000 straight cash bail, while state police brought Bohner to the hearing from Dauphin County Prison, where is being held in lieu of the same amount of bail.
Margerum agreed to reduce Bohner's bail to $50,000 after an agreement was reached between his attorney, Elisabeth K.H. Pasqualini, Millersburg, and Dauphin County Chief Deputy District Attorney Sean M. McCormack.
McCormack told the court he would only agree to the bail reduction if a stipulation was put in place that Bohner have no contact with the victim, his daughter, who was 8 weeks old at the time of his arrest Feb. 14.
"I want no contact, I have a child with multiple injuries," McCormack told the court.
Margerum agreed and reduced the bail with the no contact stipulation and sent Bohner back to prison until he can post bond.
State police Trooper Kyle Tobin of the Lykens station charged the two with assaulting the child between Jan. 6 and Feb. 12.
Tobin said the incident came to light when he was called to the emergency room at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, on Feb. 13 for a report of child abuse.
In his affidavit of probable cause, Tobin said Cormack brought the girl to the facility where doctors found she had multiple broken ribs, a broken femur bone and blistering on the bottom of her feet.
He said doctors at the medical center said the injuries were "highly suggestive" of being non-accidental.
The following day, Valentine's Day, Tobin said he interviewed Cormack, who said that on Feb. 12, she was in her bedroom with the child and Bohner. When Bohner went to change the child's diaper, she heard a loud scream and found the baby in distress.
Looking at the child, Cormack said she found the baby's leg to be swollen and limp, the trooper said.
Bohner was also interviewed and admitted changing the girl's diaper and said that he broke her leg.
Tobin said Bohner reported he rolled the child over by her leg and her screams sounded as if he had killed her.
Although the man admitted breaking the child's leg, Tobin said he claimed it was an accident.
When questioned about the child's broken ribs, Bohner said he must have inflicted those injuries while squeezing her stomach, something he regularly does to get her to pass gas and have bowel movements, Tobin said.
Bohner also said he could have broken the girl's ribs, when he rolled over on her while he and the child were sleeping but could not explain how the child's foot got broken.
Tobin said that when he questioned Cormack about the rib injuries she said she must have broken the ribs when she was squeezing the girl in an attempt to get her to have a bowel movement.
Police provided few details Tuesday about the child's current status, except that she is recuperating.