Prosecutors: Babysitter videotaped abusing infant

Prosecutors in central Wisconsin said they have videotaped evidence of a babysitter beating a 4-month-old boy.

Nineteen-year-old Jennifer Cronin, of Rothschild, is facing felony child abuse charges. A criminal complaint filed in Marathon County said the infant’s father installed a secret video camera because he was concerned that Cronin wasn’t carefully watching his children after the baby’s 2-year-old brother fell down some steps.

After reviewing some of the videotape the parents called police. The complaint said Cronin repeatedly struck the baby in the head and face while the infant was in a swing. It said Cronin grabbed the boy’s wrist and violently yanked him from the floor into the air.

Defense attorney Richard Lawson told the Wausau Daily Herald the allegations are to “totally out of character” for Cronin.