BUCYRUS — Melissa Lohr of Bucyrus pleaded guilty to child endangerment charges Wednesday in Crawford County Common Pleas Court.
According to the charges, the father of Lohr’s baby caused grave physical harm to the boy under the age of one. Lohr, 36, did not seek medical treatment for the baby for two days after the assault.
The child was transferred to Akron Children’s Hospital near death. The child has since improved but it’s not certain what long-term damage was done as a result of the baby allegedly being shaken by the father.
Before sentencing Lohr, Judge Sean Leuthold asked the prosecution if they had any comment. Assistant Prosecutor Ryan Hoovler told the court that he was heartbroken as a father by the actions of Lohr.
“This is a case of a shaken baby. These are troubling cases,” Hoovler said. “To think that a baby less than a year old was seriously and negatively affected by his father and then mother is horrible. The mother delayed seeking treatment and protected her boyfriend. My prayer is that this little boy can have a long life, but he has many hurdles to overcome.”
A troubled Leuthold reviewed various pictures.
“This is a beautiful young child. These pictures are heart breaking. He is in the hospital on a ventilator!” Leuthold said.
Leuthold noted that since the father has not faced trial yet, he has the presumption of innocence under the law.
“There was a witness to this who said the child was injured and unresponsive for two days. They let this child lie on his back and stomach occasionally trying to move him around,” Leuthold said. ”He was seriously and brutally injured and in desperate need of medical attention. But instead of being a mother and protecting her child, she didn’t want her boyfriend to get in trouble, so she put if off as long as possible. When you see a child in distress you don’t wait 48 hours. This poor little guy was suffering badly.”
Leuthold noted that Lohr has four children and has custody of none of them.
“I’m trying to keep my temper here, but I see no remorse in you,” Leuthold said. “You’ve got all these excuses but this is totally on you. You left him lying on the floor to die. This is on you. This little guy will never have to see you again. You will have no contact with him. Don’t send a letter, don’t make an attempt even though he can’t read.”
Leuthold gave Lohr the maximum sentence on the child endangerment charge, 36 months in prison.
As he descended from the bench, Leuthold told officers, “Get her out of my sight.”