| For Immediate Release Case# 06NF2918
March 27, 2009 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
ABUSIVE FATHER SENTENCED FOR
PUNCHING 2-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER AND
FRACTURING HER PELVIS
*Co-defendant charged with causing serious brain injury to the victim
SANTA ANA – An abusive father was sentenced today to four years in state prison for punching his 2-year-old daughter and fracturing her pelvis. The victim also suffered serious brain trauma caused by her father’s roommate, who is charged with shoving the little girl, causing her to hit her head against a wooden chest. Jane Doe’s father, Myron Lee Nielsen, 30, pleaded guilty to the court on Feb. 20, 2009, to one felony count of child abuse causing great bodily injury to a child under age 5.
Co-defendant Michael James Bollinger, 38, is charged with one felony count of child abuse causing great bodily injury to a child under age 5 and one felony count of sexual penetration by foreign object by force. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in state prison if convicted. Bollinger is being held on $500,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on
June 29, 2009, in Department C-35, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
In August 2006, Nielsen and his 2-year-old daughter, Jane Doe, were living with Bollinger and Bollinger’s family in Buena Park. On Aug. 14, 2006, Nielsen punched Jane Doe in the lower pelvic area, fracturing her pelvis. On Aug. 15, 2006, Bollinger is accused of aggressively shoving Jane Doe, knocking her head into a wooden chest. Bollinger is also accused of penetrating the victim’s anus on one occasion.
On Aug. 15, 2006, Nielsen took Jane Doe to the West Anaheim Medical Center to be treated for head injuries. He lied and said that the victim had hit her head while playing at the park. Due to the seriousness of her injuries, Jane Doe was transported to UCI Medical Center. Doctors found that the victim had severe brain trauma, a fractured pelvis, and a tear in her anus. They determined that the head trauma and pelvic fracture occurred on two separate occasions.
In order to save Jane Doe’s life, a portion of her skull had to be removed to alleviate the pressure in her head caused by the swelling of her brain. The victim survived but continues to have medical problems caused by the abuse.
Deputy District Attorney Cynthia Nichols of the Family Protection Unit prosecuted this case.
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