Trial delayed for Pasco man accused of abusing baby

A 20-year-old Pasco man charged with abusing his girlfriend’s baby asked Tuesday to move his trial to Feb. 7 so his attorney has more time to prepare.

Caleb R. Crenshaw was granted the three-month delay.

Meanwhile, the baby’s mother, Savanna J. Roger, is on track for her Nov. 1 trial.

The couple are accused of ignoring the 5-month-old's head injuries for two days. The boy finally got medical treatment when another new mother called police after visiting Roger’s apartment, leading officers to investigate.

Roger, 21, and Crenshaw are charged in Franklin County Superior Court with first-degree criminal mistreatment.

Crenshaw has an additional charge for first-degree assault of a child.

He allegedly abused the boy on Aug. 23 while the mom was at the store. He claims he was giving the boy a bottle when the baby fell from his arms onto his face.

Roger returned about 30 minutes later to find bruising on her son’s ear and back of his head, along with a fat upper lip that was cut on the inside, court documents said.

The following day, a new friend visited with her own baby and became concerned about Roger’s son’s well-being after noticing trauma to his head, face, back and feet. Roger told the woman she planned to take her son to the doctor one day, documents said.

Roger later told detectives she recognized the injuries were serious, but feared having her criminal and narcotic history exposed and her son taken away, court documents said.

Crenshaw separately claimed that his girlfriend threatened to kick him out of her apartment if he sought treatment, documents said.

The baby spent about a week at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland for treatment of a depressed skull fracture, then was released into protective custody.

Crenshaw remains in the Franklin County jail on $250,000 bail. Roger is being held on $50,000.

This story was originally published October 3, 2017 at 6:41 PM with the headline "Trial delayed for Pasco man accused of abusing baby."