Man pleads guilty to assaulting infant

A Berks County man admitted in Carbon County court on Monday morning to assaulting his infant son, which led to leg fractures.

He entered a guilty plea before President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II.

Jordan Dean Balthaser, 20, of Womelsdorf, pleaded to one count each of simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.

The investigation into the incident began on March 19, 2019, when state police at Hamburg were dispatched to a St. Luke’s medical treatment facility in Strausstown for a child abuse incident. The 1-month-old boy was later transferred to the Hershey Medical Center. Troopers were told by medical personnel at the center that the child suffered two fractures to the tibia and two to his femur on his left leg. Troopers also learned that the incident occurred at a residence of the child’s uncle along West Bertsch Street in Lansford sometime earlier.

According to report, the child was crying and needed his diaper changed. Balthaser told investigators he grabbed the child from a car seat he was in to change the diaper. He said he became “frustrated” by the child crying. He admitted handling the child “harder” than usual.

Later a relative noticed the child’s left leg was “limp.” That occurred at a Berks County residence. The child was then taken to the Strausstown facility and police were notified.

In exchange for the plea, the district attorney’s office dropped two counts of aggravated assault and counts of simple assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

Nanovic deferred sentencing and ordered the adult probation office to prepare a presentence investigation report.