A 24-year-old Redfield man is being held in the Jefferson County jail after he was accused of punching his 27-day-old daughter in the head twice with a closed fist because she wouldn't stop crying, authorities said.
Jefferson County District Judge Kim Bridgforth set bail Wednesday at $15,000 for Cody Joslin, the baby's father.
Redfield Police Department detective Teri Patterson was called to Arkansas Children's Hospital on Jan. 26, where the baby is being treated.
The infant's mother, Kimberly Joslin, told Patterson at the hospital that she had received a "hysterical phone call" from her husband about 4:30 p.m. that day, telling her the baby had fallen off the couch, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Doctors at Children's Hospital told the investigator the infant had elevated liver function consistent with a squeeze or a blow to the stomach, chest-wall bruising, a large "L" shape fracture on the right side of her skull, as well as another bi-frontal injury. None of the injuries were consistent with a fall of less than 3 feet, the doctor said.
When questioned by police Jan. 31, Cody Joslin initially said he had dropped the infant from shoulder height when he was bending over to retrieve her pacifier, the affidavit said. He said he lied to his wife when he told her the baby had fallen off the couch because he didn't want to be "labeled as a bad parent," authorities wrote.
The doctor told the investigator the injuries were too severe to be from simply dropping the infant, but were caused by blunt-force trauma or a forceful squeeze.
When Patterson confronted Cody Joslin on Wednesday with the doctor's assessment of the injuries, Joslin admitted that he beat his daughter because she would not stop crying, the affidavit said. He said he lied to his wife because "he felt guilty for punching the infant in the head," police wrote.
Cody Joslin was arrested by Redfield Police and charged with first-degree battery. The judge ordered that he have no contact with the infant until the case is decided.
Cody Joslin was still listed as an inmate in the Jefferson County jail Friday.
State Desk on 02/11/2017