Hearing waived in assault case

SANDPOINT — An Oldtown man accused of threatening a 4-year-old girl with a knife waived his right to a preliminary hearing on Dec. 13.

David Fernandez Jr.’s waiver clears the way for his arraignment on an aggravated assault charge 1st District Court on Jan. 2, 2018, court records show.

Fernandez also faces two counts of misdemeanor injury to child for allegedly hurting a 2-year-old boy.

Fernandez is accused of elbowing the toddler in the stomach, hitting him in the face and roughly throwing the boy onto a couch, where his head struck a wooden divider on the piece of furniture.

The charges date back to Nov. 30. Fernandez’s defense counsel has filed papers indicating that he is pleading not guilty to the charges.

Fernandez denied threatening the 4-year-old girl and said it was done in jest, according to a probable cause affidavit. He downplayed the misconduct involving the toddler as roughhousing, the affidavit said.

Fernandez is being held at the Bonner County Jail in lieu of $35,000, according to court documents. Fernandez has no prior criminal record in the state of Idaho, according to the state supreme court data repository.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.