Left: Maverick Peterson. Right: Katlyn Leshey Conrad (Madison County Sheriff’s Office).
In Indiana, a woman and her partner have been arrested for allegedly mistreating and ignoring her 2-year-old son, who has sustained injuries all over his body and may never fully recover.
Maverick Peterson, aged 23, and Katlyn Leshey Conrad, aged 25, have been charged with neglecting a dependent and causing severe bodily harm. They are currently held in the Madison County Jail.
The Madison County Prosecutor, Rodney Cummings, expressed shock at the extent of the child’s injuries, describing them as severe and distressing. The child’s body showed extensive bruising, a brain bleed, and lacerations on his genitals, painting a heartbreaking picture of the abuse endured by the young boy.
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According to a probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, the Alexandria Police Department started investigating Nov. 19 when it received a call about an unconscious 2-year-old boy at a home in the 100 block of South West Street. Paramedics rushed the boy to Community Hospital Anderson where the Emergency Room doctor told cops the boy’s injuries did not match Peterson’s explanation, the affidavit said. The boy was then transferred to Riley Children’s Hospital.
Nurses noted the boy’s extensive injuries: skull fractures, brain bleeding, bruises throughout the body at different stages of healing, burn marks on his right foot and a laceration on his penis, the affidavit said. Bruises on the leg appear to have been caused by someone’s hand, police said.
Peterson, the boyfriend, told cops post-Miranda that he was watching the boy and his own daughter while Conrad was on her overnight shift at work. He allegedly claimed the two kids were playing in the house when the boy ran face first into a 75-gallon fish tank, causing him to fall over and hit his head. As for the bruises, Peterson allegedly said the boy is “clumsy” and plays rough with the girl.
Conrad told police in her post-Miranda interview that the boy sometimes grabs at his penis while he’s sleeping and suffered the burn marks from wearing boots that were too big. Detectives noted that she appeared to be “calm, relaxed and not worried” during her interview. By contrast, Peterson’s “hands were visibly shaking and at times he would take deep breaths, and his voice would crackle under stress,” the affidavit said. Police believe both are lying and that Peterson abused the boy and Conrad is lying to protect her boyfriend, the affidavit said.
Investigators also interviewed Peterson’s daughter who reportedly said her father hurt her and hit her with a wooden spoon. She said “daddy is so bad,” according to the affidavit. The girl’s mother allegedly told investigators that Peterson “has anger issues.”
A child protective services investigation concluded that the child’s injuries were likely intentionally inflicted.
“At this time, given the absence of a plausible history to explain them, the constellation of findings in this patient is highly suspicious of non-accidental/inflicted trauma,” the investigator said.
Cops arrested Peterson and Conrad on Nov. 25 and prosecutors filed formal charges on Tuesday. Both remain in jail on a $100,000 bond. Neither had an attorney listed.
