Couple charged in tot's injuries
Two caretakers are accused of failing to seek medical care for a 2-year-old boy who was seriously injured after falling out of a second-story window at their Butler home.
Butler police Friday arrested Michael J. Blontz, 37, and his wife, Ruth N. Blontz, 37, on felony charges of child endangerment.
The charges come after authorities first learned of the accident about 12 hours after it happened on July 3, at the couple's home on the 500 block of West Jefferson Street.
The boy, who landed on a concrete pad, was taken by ambulance to Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh and treated for a broken pelvis and other possible injuries, investigators said. His condition Sunday was not available.
Police were notified about 12:30 p.m., after they said a third-party caller reported to 911 that a 2-year-old boy had fallen from the upstairs window overnight.
Officers got there and spoke to the child's mother, a 32-year-old Butler woman. She told police, according to court documents, that she had left her son and another child at the Blontz's home under the couple's care.She later rode with her injured child to the hospital.Police said Ruth Blontz recounted that the boy fell out of a bedroom window sometime between 1 and 2 a.m. July 3.Investigators believe the child at the time was in the bedroom with other children, and that he apparently opened the window himself.Police said the bed was up against the wall of the window and the window's lock did not work. They noted the window could be opened with “minimal force.”The defendants' children, possibly as many as five, police said, were also at the house. At some point, one of the other children went outside and brought the injured boy inside.Ruth Blontz said she examined the boy for any broken bones. She subsequently placed him on her bed and “tried to comfort him,” according to a police affidavit.One of the other children later advised police that the boy's body “hurt all over” and that he “cried all night.”Ruth Blontz said she sent the boy's mother a text message, informing her that her son had fallen.“(She) stated that she did not call 911 because her husband, Michael Blontz, told her not to,” the affidavit said, “and she did not want to fight with him.”Police said Michael Blontz told them that he was awakened by his children, who mentioned the victim had fallen. He went upstairs to the bedroom where the fall happened.When he returned to his bedroom downstairs, he saw his wife with the boy on the bed.“(Michael Blontz) then stated that he grabbed his pillow and took it out to the couch to go back to bed,” the affidavit said, “since he (had) to work in the morning.”Police said they reviewed their findings with the Butler County District Attorney's Office before filing charges in the case.The defendants were arraigned Friday. Michael Blontz is free on his own recognizance. His wife is free on $5,000 bail.Online court records did not indicate if either defendant has an attorney. They could not be reached for comment Sunday.
