Father Throws, Squeezes 6-Month-Old Daughter Causing Multiple Rib Fractures, Hemorrhages; Sentenced To 30 Years

A Georgia man has been sentenced to prison after admitting to repeatedly abusing his infant daughter. He confessed to throwing the baby on the floor and squeezing her chest, causing multiple rib fractures and hemorrhages, according to prosecutors.

Timothy Lee Hatmaker, 29, of Villa Rica, was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years, with the first 20 years to be served behind bars and the remaining 10 years on probation. He pleaded guilty to two counts of cruelty to children and one count of aggravated battery in the child abuse case that stemmed from a 2019 incident, reported The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Hatmaker's 6-month-old daughter was brought to a hospital after suffering seizures in March 2019. The medical examination revealed the infant had severe head injuries that required emergency surgery. The baby also had new and old rib fractures, brain bleeds and retinal hemorrhages.

The police started an investigation and arrested Hatmaker after he confessed to throwing the child on the ground. He also told investigators he did it because the baby kept crying and he did not feel like he had a good connection with her, WSB-TV Atlanta reported.

The investigators also learned Hatmaker squeezed the infant around her chest two months prior to the incident.

"He also admitted that about two months prior, while she was crying, he squeezed the child around her chest, that being consistent with the healing injuries observed," the prosecutor said as per WSB-TV Atlanta.

Hatmaker's trial was supposed to start later this month, but he pleaded guilty last week.

As for the child, she is said to be doing well currently.

Earlier this week, a couple was arrested in Tennessee after their 6-month-old child was hospitalized with multiple bone fractures. The police arrested 24-year-old Katarina Finney and 30-year-old Troy Hicks from Johnson City Tuesday on charges of aggravated child abuse and one count of aggravated child neglect. The doctors determined that the infant had four bone fractures in various stages of healing in the arm, leg and rib areas. When parents were questioned about the child's injuries, they could not provide any explanation.