Anthony Hildreth (Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office).
A troubling case has emerged from Florida, where a man is facing accusations of causing 25 fractures in the bones of a baby left in his care. Law enforcement officials report that the man allegedly admitted to repeatedly squeezing the infant’s ribs out of frustration, claiming he was attempting to alleviate the child’s gas pains.
Identified as 31-year-old Anthony Hildreth from Jacksonville, he confessed to police that he felt disappointed with himself for not being able to comfort the crying baby, as noted in the arrest documentation.
“Anthony advised that [the child] was crying and he became frustrated by that,” states the report from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. His frustration allegedly led to the harmful actions as described.
According to the investigation, Hildreth admitted to employing various methods in a misguided effort to relieve the child’s discomfort on June 30. That evening, after the baby was placed under his care, the child began crying. On the same day, a daytime caretaker noted that the baby seemed gassy but showed no signs of injury or distress.
“One of these techniques included squeezing the ribs starting from light pressure to more pressure until he passed gas,” the report says. “Another technique utilized by Anthony was ‘bicycle kicks,’ where he would push [the child’s] legs to his chest.”
Hildreth told police he used these techniques several times throughout the night to soothe the infant. “Anthony noticed that [the child’s] breathing was different after he squeezed his to release his gas,” the arrest report says.
Around 3 a.m., the woman — who was also at the home and had been sleeping — woke up to the baby crying. “Anthony then notified [the woman] he was worried about the breathing as it appeared to be abnormal,” according to police. “Anthony furthermore stated he could have caused the rib fractures by the amount of pressure he utilized when squeezing near the ribs to release gas.”
The child was brought to a local hospital due to the breathing issues and medical staff reported that he had 24 fractures to his ribs and a fracture to his right femur near the knee. Police were notified and made contact with Hildreth and the woman.
“Anthony was unsure of how the fracture to the femur was caused,” the arrest report says. “Anthony stated [the child’s] leg got stuck in the swaddling device unknowingly and he did not notice until he pulled harder on the swaddling device. Due to the severity of the fractures caused to [the child] Anthony was arrested for aggravated child abuse.”
Hildreth was released on a $50,003 bond and placed on home detention with electronic monitoring. He has entered a plea of not guilty.