John McCarthy
INDIANAPOLIS — A man accused of attacking his girlfriend’s autistic 1-year-old after the child spilled water has been convicted, Indiana prosecutors said.
The jury deliberated for approximately 20 minutes before handing down a guilty verdict to 29-year-old Gregory Haendiges, who was charged with battery on a child, the Delaware County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said in a March 18 news release.
Attorney information for Haendiges was not immediately available.
Haendiges, of Muncie, rubbed the 1-year-old’s nose and forehead into the carpet after the toddler accidentally spilled water in November 2021, prosecutors said. This caused a “bloody wound” to the child’s forehead, prosecutors said.
The child is nonverbal and autistic, prosecutors said.
During the attack, Haendiges told the child, “(I)f you are going to act like an animal, I’ll treat you like one,” according to the prosecuting attorney’s office.
Haendiges faces up to 2.5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, prosecutors said.
His sentencing is scheduled for April 14.
Muncie is about a 60-mile drive northeast from Indianapolis.
By KATE LINDERMAN/McClatchy News
Kate Linderman covers real-time news for McClatchy. Previously, she was an audience editor at the Chicago Tribune and a freelance reporter. Kate is a graduate of DePaul University where she studied journalism and legal and public affairs communication.
