BENTONVILLE -- A Springdale man was sentenced Monday to 30 years in prison after admitting he injured a 1-year-old boy.
Dallas Colten Lewallen, 26, pleaded guilty Monday to battery under an agreement Joshua Meister, his attorney, reached with Stuart Cearley, chief deputy prosecutor.
Lewallen was arrested in September 2018.
Rogers police received a report a boy was in critical condition and transported from Mercy Hospital to Mercy in Springfield, Mo., after being diagnosed with a brain bleed, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Detectives went to Springfield and the boy's mother, Megan Seals, said she found Lewallen holding her unconscious son, according to the affidavit. Lewallen, who was her boyfriend, tried to stop Seals from calling 911, the affidavit states.
Seals told police she believed Lewallen caused her son's injuries because he cried often, according to the affidavit.
The boy's physician said the child's injuries were not consistent with a fall and a level of force was involved in the injuries, according to the affidavit.
Seals' daughter shares a bedroom with her brother and was interviewed at the Children's Advocacy Center of Benton County where she repeatedly said "Daddy Dallas" threw her brother and he was dead, according to the affidavit. The girl was asked to show how her brother was thrown. She lifted a doll in the air and threw it to the ground, according to the affidavit. The affidavit did not specify the girl's age.
Lewallen told police he threw the boy and said it was possible the boy struck his head against a rail when he threw him into the crib, according to the affidavit.
Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren sentenced Lewallen to 30 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction. He must abide by a suspended sentence agreement for 10 years after his release from prison.