Man accused of child abuse

SANDPOINT — A Priest River man is accused fracturing a 6-month-old girl’s leg.

Preston Glen Dale Davis is charged with felony injury to a child. He was released on his own recognizance after making an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court on Thursday, court records show.

Judge Debra Heise entered a no-contact order between Davis and the child, and appointed a public defender to represent him.

A preliminary hearing in the case is pending.

Davis, 18, caused a spiral fracture on the girl’s left femur on Aug. 24, according to charging documents.

The child was taken to Newport Community Hospital to be examined and later transferred to Spokane’s Sacred Heart Medical Center due to the severity of the injury. Doctors alerted the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare because such an injury on an infant can indicative of abuse.

A spiral fracture, also known as a torsion fracture, occurs when torque is applied along the axis of a bone.

An X-ray of the child’s legs also detected a healing fracture of the girl’s right leg, court documents indicate.

The more recent injury occurred while the mother was showering, according to a probable cause affidavit. Davis was initially at a loss to explain the injury, but subsequently told investigators that he was playing with the child’s legs in an attempt to stop her from crying.

Davis denied intentionally hurting the child and told Priest River Police he believes the injury resulted from rough play and inexperience around small children, an arrest report said.

The child was taken into protective custody. It appears from court documents the child is already the subject of a child-protection proceeding in the state of Montana.