Child abuse charges have been dropped against a Wisconsin man, following a family’s dispute of the incident.
As reported by Law&Crime, authorities took Jaimann Eiland, aged 32, into custody in March, charging him with substantial battery with a domestic abuse modifier and child abuse.
Eiland was initially accused by police of “intentionally throwing” his 1-year-old step-granddaughter from a balcony amid an altercation with the child’s mother, Shakira Walters, 25 years old.
The incident occurred at a residence located in the 700 block of North 41st Street, Milwaukee. The child fell approximately 15 feet from the balcony and was subsequently taken to the Children’s Hospital with injuries including abrasions and bruises.
In court Tuesday, the state dismissed those charges, according to FOX 6.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Hasle stated, “The state is dismissing count one of child abuse due to evidentiary limitations, one significant issue involves SW’s credibility.”
He further added, “While SW claims the defendant deliberately threw the baby off the porch, multiple other witnesses, among them her own family members, offer accounts that contradict her allegations.”
Walters’ credibility was also considered a factor after the court heard that she was arrested in April for allegedly abusing her two older children.
According to a criminal complaint, she struck the children, ages 8 and 10, with a belt after one child cracked an egg over the other child’s head.
The children later told police they watched a YouTube video that said an egg makes hair grow longer, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
“I came in and whooped his butt. … I use the belt for them. It ain’t like I mean I picked up a broom stick or something,” she reportedly told police.
However, one of the children reported to the police that he had been struck on the arms and back. The other child mentioned being hit on the buttocks but was uncertain as he did not break the egg.
Meanwhile, Eiland’s attorney, Jason Baltz, argued that Eiland spent nearly half a year behind bars for an incident he was innocent of.
“Where does a 32-year-old man go to get his reputation back?” Baltz said. “The whole first page of Google for Mr. Eiland is about how he dropped or threw a baby off the balcony that simply did not happen.”
“This case was problematic from the get-go. Problems with the investigation with the relations between the investigator and the victim. I believe there was a family relation.”
Eiland pleaded guilty to lesser charges, including two counts of misdemeanor battery and one count of misdemeanor disorderly conduct.
He will serve no additional jail time after serving 159 days.
[Feature Photo via Milwaukee PD]
