GALVESTON, Texas — A man charged with injuring his daughter by putting her in a microwave oven also placed her in a refrigerator and in a hotel room safe, a police detective testified Tuesday.
Joshua Mauldin, 19, of Warren, Ark., tossed his daughter on one hotel room bed, then the other, then struck her in the groin before putting her in the appliances and safe, Galveston Police Detective Holly Johnson during a bail reduction hearing.
State District Judge Susan Criss denied the request to reduce Mauldin's bail from $250,000 to $100,000.
The May 10 incident happened as Mauldin, his wife and daughter were moving to Galveston, where Mauldin planned to be a preacher. Left alone in the hotel room with his daughter, Mauldin "became agitated," Johnson said.
Investigators found human tissue in the microwave that matched the burns on the left side of the girl's face and her left hand. Police said the infant was in the oven 10 to 20 seconds.
The two-month-old girl, who had two skin grafts, was released from the Shriners Burn Hospital on Monday and into the care of foster parents who were trained on how to tend to her medical needs.
During the hearing, Johnson also said the girl's mother, Eva Marie Mauldin, did not appear to be protective of the infant. Eva Marie Mauldin has defended her husband, saying Satan was to blame for his actions.
The judge ordered a competency hearing for Joshua Mauldin, who was taking depression medication, according to his attorney, Charles Kaufmann.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/4826432.html
