A Wisconsin father has been charged after telling police that his 2-month-old son's crying "triggers" him and that he got a "high" from inflicting pain on his baby, court documents show.
The newborn has suffered "significant injuries" and remains hospitalized after being flown to Milwaukee Children's Hospital for treatment, according to a statement by the Oshkosh Police Department (OPD).
Michael Ormond, 39, of Marshfield, has been charged with abusing his baby son and faces two counts of child abuse: one of intentionally cause great bodily harm and a second of intentionally cause harm, according to documents filed in Winnebago County Court. Ormond made an initial court appearance Tuesday, where a $50,000 cash bond was set. A judge also ordered Ormond to have no contact with minors, his son or the son's mother.
Court records listed Christine Bruen with J. Kippa Law Office as the attorney for Ormond. Newsweek reached out via email and the law office's website for comment.
Officers with the OPD responded to a call from a Neenah hospital after the baby was brought there on September 7 with substantial bruising all over his body and a brain bleed, according to the criminal complaint obtained by Newsweek.
"The entire retina had hemorrhages, too numerous to count, which is a
pattern consistent with abusive head trauma," the affidavit states.
The 2-month-old boy had just been released from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) shortly before the abuse, the affidavit shows. The newborn, identified as V1 in the documents, had been born two months premature and spent 47 days in the hospital before going home, the criminal complaint states. He was released from the NICU nine days prior to being re-admitted with severe injuries.
"Michael admitted to having thoughts of hurting VI since bringing him home from the hospital," the document states. "Michael reported that after [the baby] came home from the NICU, he would hurt V1 when he was alone with him."
Ormond told investigators that he would pinch his son's toes when the baby was crying.
"It ultimately led to squeezing [the baby's] legs, arms, neck and face," the criminal complaint states.
Ormond reportedly told investigators that the worst incident was September 7, the day the baby was hospitalized. He said there were two bouts of abuse that day, according to court documents. The first involved spanking the baby three times and the second occurred later when, Ormond told police, he squeezed the baby's legs, arms, neck and mouth before shaking the boy and setting him down "too hard."
"Michael stated that he has anger issues and [the baby]'s crying triggers him. Michael reported that when he hurts [the baby] he gets something like a 'runner's high,'" according to the criminal complaint.
Ormond told police that he also abused his two daughters the same way when they were infants, saying to investigators that he only has issues with babies under the age of 9 months, according to the document.
Ormond's next court appearance is scheduled for September 21, court records show.
Update 9/17/2023, 11:41 p.m. ET: This article was updated with information and a photo from the OPD.
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