Man accused of throwing toddler to ground

SHANICE WATSON

A man accused of throwing a toddler to the ground, rendering the baby unconscious, was granted bail when he appeared in the Corporate Area Residents Magistrate's Court on Monday.

The accused, Jermaine Johnson, is charged with cruelty to a child. He pleaded not guilty.

The court heard that, on the day in question, Johnson and his babymother had an argument at gate. She left for inside the house to get ready for work. Johnson, who was outside the gate, became enraged and flung his son over the gate, causing the child to become unconscious.

The child was taken to the University Hospital of the West Indies.

However, Johnson claimed his son had accidentally fallen.

"I open the gate to give her the baby, and he keep on twisting to come back in my hands, that's how he fell," he claimed. "He's my baby, my boy that. I would never hurt him."

However, the parole officer's report painted a different picture of Johnson.

"The report says you need some counselling because you are very aggressive," Senior RM Judith Pusey said.

"You seem to want to punish her (child's mother) through the children. The community says you are a womaniser, and you are very aggressive towards your babymother, and you beat her all the time."

Pusey issued a stern warning to Johnson, telling him to avoid his babymother and desist from assaulting her. He was later granted bail at $40,000.

He is to return to court on February 16 when the child's medical report is expected to be ready.