Man charged with assault on 9-month-old

A 9-month-old Marion boy who detectives believe was sexually and physically assaulted remained in critical condition Monday at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane.

The boyfriend of the child's mother, 20-year-old Shane Phillip Nickerson, was arrested Saturday morning in connection with the abuse, according to the Flathead County Sheriff's Office.

He was charged Monday with sexual intercourse without consent, sexual assault, aggravated assault, and criminal endangerment, all felonies.

During an initial appearance Monday in Flathead County Justice Court, Nickerson was informed of the charges against him, read his rights, and appointed a public defender.

Justice Court Judge David M. Ortley set bail at $750,000.

Nickerson, seemingly unruffled by the charges, asked Ortley how soon he could be released from jail when a DNA sample he gave exonerated him.

Prosecutors, however, are convinced Nickerson is responsible for sexually and physically abusing the 9-month-old boy.

According to court documents, sheriff's deputies were called to Kalispell Regional Medical Center about 10 a.m. Saturday after medical personnel found the child with bruises on his head, a bloody mouth, and injuries consistent with sexual abuse.

Doctors there told detectives the boy had suffered traumatic brain injuries and respiratory failure.

The child's mother later told detectives that her boyfriend, Nickerson, had volunteered to watch the child while she slept in Saturday morning.

After spending Friday night with Nickerson at his Marion cabin, the boy's mother gave Nickerson permission to take the child downstairs to his playpen at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday.

Two hours later, at 8:30 a.m., Nickerson woke the child's mother and said that something was wrong.

After observing bruising on the child's head and blood in his diaper, the mother asked Nickerson to drive her and the boy from the Wildebeest Lane residence to the hospital.

Only Nickerson, the mother, and her child were present in the home when the assault allegedly occurred, and the mother told detectives her son had been fine at bedtime the night before, said Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan.

From Kalispell Regional Medical Center, the child was airlifted to Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, where he was admitted with brain injuries, possibly from partial asphyxiation. A second medical exam also found that the boy had suffered other injuries consistent with sexual abuse.

Detectives have enlisted the help of the Spokane Police Department's Major Crimes Unit in collecting forensic evidence from the child, Meehan said.

If convicted of all charges, Nickerson faces up to 230 years in prison and a $200,000 fine. His arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 28.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com