Jacksonville police say a 31-year-old caregiver is facing a felony child abuse charge after doctors discovered an infant in his care had a staggering 25 bone fractures. The man, identified in arrest reports as Anthony Hildreth, was booked into the Duval County jail late on June 30 on one count of aggravated child abuse, a first-degree felony. Medical staff transferred the child from an emergency room to a pediatric hospital for more specialized testing, and the case was then turned over to law enforcement.
According to News4JAX, Hildreth and a witness brought the infant to Baptist Medical Center South around 3 a.m. on June 30, reporting the baby was having trouble breathing. An initial X-ray at Baptist South showed two fractured ribs. A follow-up skeletal survey at Wolfson Children’s Hospital then revealed a total of 24 rib fractures along with a fracture to the right femur near the knee. A physician’s assistant told investigators the pattern of bilateral rib fractures suggested the child had been squeezed with significant force, according to the arrest report.
Medical guidelines call for a full skeletal survey when infants turn up with unexplained fractures, since comprehensive imaging often exposes additional injuries in various stages of healing that are critical in evaluating possible abuse. As detailed in an American Academy of Pediatrics clinical report, newly discovered fractures on a survey can shift the course of an investigation and trigger a deeper review by child-welfare authorities.
Suspect's Account and Investigators' Findings
Hildreth told detectives he assumed sole care of the infant at about 9:30 p.m. on June 29 and tried to soothe the child’s gas and fussiness using several techniques, including squeezing the baby’s ribs with increasing pressure and performing what he called “bicycle kicks,” News4JAX reported. He acknowledged that the baby’s breathing seemed different after he applied pressure. As for the femur fracture, he said he did not know how it happened, telling investigators the infant’s leg had become stuck in a swaddling device and he pulled harder on it.
Court documents cited in the outlet’s report show a judge set Hildreth’s bond at $50,003 and ordered him to home detention with electronic monitoring while the case moves forward.
Legal Implications
Under Florida law, aggravated child abuse is a first-degree felony that covers intentional acts or omissions resulting in serious physical injury to a child. Prosecutors will look to the specific elements and penalties laid out in state statute when weighing how to proceed; see Florida Statute §827.03 for the language that governs aggravated child abuse charges.
Local Context
The arrest lands amid a series of high-profile child abuse investigations in Jacksonville. Earlier this month, local reporting detailed the arrest of a babysitter and two adults after another infant was hospitalized with severe head and rib injuries. For more on that case, see how a babysitter admits abusing infant.
The Florida Department of Children and Families operates a 24/7 hotline for suspected child abuse, accessible at 1-800-962-2873 or via the Florida Abuse Hotline. Local authorities say the investigation into the latest case remains active.
