Teenage father appears in court for alleged child abuse

A teenage father accused of abusing his 7-week-old son told detectives that he often became frustrated with the fussy baby and would squeeze him, though he didn’t intend to hurt him, according to court documents.

Bradley Gloyd, 19, of Vancouver made a first appearance Tuesday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of first-degree assault of a child.

Doctors say that in the few, short weeks of his life, the baby has suffered fractures to his skull, shoulder and arm, and rib, all to the right side of his body, and fractures to both of his lower legs. Most of the injuries were in various stages of healing, court records state.

Clark County sheriff’s deputies were called the night of July 24 to Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center for a possible child abuse investigation. The baby and both of his parents were there with Child Protective Services. He was being prepared to be transported to Randall Children’s Hospital in Portland, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Both Gloyd and his fiancee mentioned to detectives their frustration in caring for the child but denied knowing anything about his injuries, the affidavit states.

Doctors determined that the child was injured on at least two occasions and that the cause was blunt-force trauma, court records said.

Gloyd later told detectives that at times he set the baby down too hard and hugged him tight when he became frustrated with his crying. He said that once when he was changing the child, the baby started urinating on him, so he grabbed his ankles and pulled him closer, according to court documents.

At other times, he plopped the baby down on the bed, causing him to bounce and smack the headboard, Gloyd said, or tossed his bottle on the bed, striking him, court records state.

However, Gloyd maintained that he didn’t intend to hurt the child, the affidavit said.

On Tuesday, Judge Gregory Gonzales set Gloyd’s bail at $150,000. He will be arraigned Friday.