assault? this isn't assault, it's the most heinous act i have EVER heard of

i cannot imagine how ANYONE is capable of doing something like this. i'm bordering on changing my mind about capital punishment.

the child is going to be (physically) fine it appears. that is a miracle in itself. we are talking a NEW BORN BABY being smashed about then jolted with a cattle prod.

what did the mother know? i cannot for the life of me believe the mother knew NOTHING. the torture took place over more than one day.

Somerset father accused in assault

By Caitlin Cleary, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A Somerset County man has been accused of abusing his newborn daughter -- smashing her head into a bathroom sink and onto a dining room table, bending her leg over his shoulder until he heard it break and twice using an electric cattle prod on the baby.
Brandon Alan Austill, 21, of Somerset Borough, was charged Wednesday with aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a child and possession of an electric or electronic incapacitation device.
The device, a hand-held prod called the Hot Shot Power-Mite, is used legitimately by dairy farmers, hog producers and large-animal veterinarians to deliver 4,500-volt shocks to cattle, pigs and other livestock. Its manufacturer warns buyers to keep the Power-Mite away from children.
Mr. Austill is being held at the Somerset County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bail. A preliminary hearing was set for 10 a.m. Thursday before District Judge Arthur K. Cook.
The infant girl, Candice Austill, suffered broken shin and thigh bones, a broken forearm, facial injuries and two separate skull fractures. She was airlifted to Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh on Oct. 31 for treatment. Candice was later released from Children's Hospital and is now in foster care, said Somerset Borough Police Chief Randy Cox.............