ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) - A St. Charles County judge has ordered a new trial for a Missouri woman convicted of child abuse.
Gina Grzeskowiak, 38, a St. Peters mother of three, was found guilty of three counts of child abuse and one count of child endangerment after a four-day jury trial in March in St. Charles County. She faced between one and 15 years in prison on each count when she was in court Friday to be sentenced.
Her attorney, Charles James, however, filed a motion before the sentencing for a new trial. James said a child witness had recanted her story about the abuse and had in the process committed a crime of filing a false police report. The child was never granted immunity from prosecution, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported (https://bit.ly/1qpZaMI ).
Circuit Judge Ted House agreed that because the child testified without the special consideration, Grzeskowiak’s conviction should be thrown out.
Grzeskowiak, who was charged as a prior and persistent offender, has previous convictions for forgery and for felony endangering the welfare of a child for driving drunk with her older daughter in the car. She’s in custody on $75,000 cash-only bail.
St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar said his office would ask House to reconsider the ruling and if that fails, he’ll take the case to the Missouri Court of Appeals.
The charges against Grzeskowiak originated in July when police accused her of causing a gash on a child’s head by throwing a can of formula at the child, who police said also had bruises from Grzeskowiak grabbing her and hitting her. A 5-month-old boy was also inside her vehicle in a car seat without any seat belts.
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Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, https://www.stltoday.com
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