Alameda dad left 1-year-old in bath as he prepared food, scalding most of her body, police say
ALAMEDA — A local resident was charged with felony child abuse after he allegedly left his 1-year-old daughter in a bathtub with hot running water as he cooked dinner, court records show.
The 31-year-old Alameda resident was charged after he brought the girl to a hospital, where doctors estimated she suffered burns on 62 percent of her body. He told authorities that he turned on the bath, left the girl in the tub as he cooked, then ran back when he heard her screams, according to court records.
Police say they recreated the scene with him, placing the water setting how he claimed he had it. An officer checked the tub and found that the water got extremely hot within a few seconds, authorities said.
The girl was burned on June 8. The man was charged on June 20, court records show.
On June 23, a judge secured the defendant’s release, but ordered him not to interact with any of his children without their mother present. He told police he is no longer with either of his five children’s mothers but had been effectively co-parenting with the victim’s mother, according to court records.
The man is set to go before a judge for a preliminary hearing in mid-July, records show. He has pleaded not guilty.