Butler woman pleads no contest to burning child
A Butler woman, accused of using a stove top to burn the hands of her boyfriend's 6-year-old daughter, pleaded no contest in Butler County Court on Wednesday.
Tonya L. Schmidt, 36, pleaded no contest to felony aggravated assault before county Judge Timothy McCune.
The plea agreement calls for a sentence of three to six years in a state correctional facility, restitution and fines.
Butler police said that on the morning of Jan. 4, Schmidt held the 6-year-old girl's hands, one at a time, over an open flame on the gas stove at the family's home on East Pearl Street.
This caused injuries, including second-degree burns. She then did not immediately get medical help for the child, police said.
Only after the girl showed up for school that morning did authorities learn what happened and get her to the hospital.
A full report will appear in the Butler Eagle.
