Trooper seeks bond modification to see child

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An Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper accused of hitting his infant son filed a motion last week seeking a bond modification that would allow him to see his child.

A motion to modify bond was filed in the Champaign County Municipal Court on Feb. 11 in the case of Jerad L. White.

White, 38, of Urbana, is charged with two counts each of domestic violence and endangering children. A condition of his bond is that he cannot have contact with his infant son.

Within the motion to modify bond, attorney Jay Lopez said prior to the criminal case, White was heavily involved in his son’s life and has not seen him since the alleged incident. Lopez notes White has a pending custody matter in the Champaign County Common Pleas Court regarding the child.

Lopez contends the child is too young to testify in the case and White could not influence the testimony of the minor child.

“Mr. White would like to have contact with his son,” Lopez stated. “This court should modify the defendant’s bond to allow defendant to be in the presence of his son as ordered and approved by the Champaign County Court of Common Pleas Juvenile Division.”

A court statement filed in December 2018 by the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office states White’s live-in girlfriend and mother of the child, Christa Browning, went to the sheriff’s office on Dec. 26, 2018, in reference to an ongoing physical domestic issue involving her live-in boyfriend. She provided photographs of what appeared to be a large hand print on the right buttocks and back/side of the right thigh area of the child.

Browning stated that this has occurred approximately five times within the past six months.

She stated that on Dec. 25, 2018, the child grabbed a screwdriver from the kitchen table that White had been using and White yelled at and hit the child.

White reportedly then took Browning’s cellular phone from her in an attempt to delete photos of his actions. She subsequently used the house phone to call 911 and stated that White, his mother, his three other juvenile daughters and the victim were present at this time.

Browning also stated that upon law enforcement’s arrival, she said everything was OK and that she and the defendant were only involved in a verbal dispute. She stated that White was standing in the doorway while she was speaking with law enforcement and that he had advised her not to tell the truth because he could lose his job.

Browning also said that on Dec. 6, 2018, White became angry when the boy touched an ornament on the Christmas tree. He reportedly hit the boy, leaving a red mark through a pair of pajamas and a diaper. She provided screen shots of a text message conversation with White in which he denied responsibility for the marks.

A plea of not guilty was filed on White’s behalf on Dec. 28, 2018.

White is a trooper with the Piqua post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and started his highway patrol career in 2003. Representatives from the highway patrol previously stated White was placed on administrative duties pending the completion of an internal investigation.

Special prosecutor

Previously, a notice of recusal/request for special prosecutor was filed by Champaign County County Municipal Prosecutor Mark Feinstein informing the court that he must recuse himself from the case due to a conflict of interest. The court ordered the appointment of Attorney Jennifer Brumby to represent the state in this case.

A certificate of assignment filed in the case states Thomas M. Hanna, a retired judge of the Kettering Municipal Court, will preside over the case.

White
https://www.urbanacitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/36/2019/02/web1_White-Jerad-L..jpgWhite

By Nick Walton

[email protected]

Nick Walton can be reached at 937-652-1331 Ext. 1777.

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