"Baby" HETZE-WERNER - 2 months - Rudolph WI

A 31-year-old Rudolph woman who authorities said failed to prevent
her infant child from abuse that led to more than 20 bone fractures
avoided incarceration Friday after pleading no contest to related
charges.As
the result of a plea agreement, Nancy Hetze-Werner was found guilty of
three misdemeanor counts of child neglect. The charges were reduced
from a felony charge of failure to prevent bodily harm to a child.During
Friday's hearing, Wood County Circuit Court Judge James Mason sentenced
Hetze-Werner to two years of probation. Mason said he hopes she has
learned from the experience that it is her responsibility to take care
of and protect her child."I
would expect, and your community would expect, and every mother would
expect, that you're going to look out for that baby," Mason said.
"Hopefully, that will occur in all future relationships you might have."Hetze-Werner's
husband, Joshua J. Werner, 25, who remains in the Wood County Jail, is
accused of causing 22 fractures to the 2-month-old child. He faces two
felony charges of child abuse and one felony charge of first-degree
reckless injury; he's scheduled to go to trial Dec. 1. He and his
attorney were both present during Hetze-Werner's appearance Friday.According
to court documents, Riverview Hospital officials contacted Wisconsin
Rapids officers Aug. 18, 2008, about possible abuse of a baby who had a
broken leg.Hetze-Werner
first told authorities a dog was responsible but later said the baby
was alone in the bedroom with Werner when the injuries occurred.After
the infant was transferred to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in
Milwaukee, doctors found more broken bones, including rib, collar bone,
leg, finger, toe and vertebra fractures.Hetze-Werner's
attorney, Nicholas Brazeau Jr., said his client doesn't understand
other people's needs or how her actions affect others. Although she was
declared competent to stand trial, Hetze-Werner has issues that might
have made it difficult for her to step in when she saw her child get
hurt."She is not
what I would call an evil person or even a bad person," Brazeau said,
"but more of a person who was not able to act."Brazeau
said Hetze-Werner has been visiting her daughter, who is now 16 months
old, twice a month and has regular contact with the baby's foster
mother.Because
of Hetze-Werner's limitations, a jury might have found she wasn't
physically or emotionally capable of protecting her child from the
abuse, said Wood County Assistant District Attorney Craig Lambert, the
prosecutor in the case. The plea agreement holds Hetze-Werner
accountable for her actions, Lambert said.In
addition to the probation sentence, Mason ordered Hetze-Werner to pay
court costs plus restitution of $9,742 and undergo any counseling
deemed necessary, including parenting classes.

A 25-year-old Wisconsin Rapids man faces up to nine years in prison
after he pleaded no contest to charges that he broke multiple bones of
his 2-month-old daughter.
On Friday, Joshua J. Werner was found guilty of child abuse and
second-degree reckless injury. Wood County Circuit Court Judge James
Mason dismissed a second count of child abuse, but read it into the
record. The second-degree reckless injury charge was reduced from a
charge of first-degree reckless injury. Mason scheduled Werner's
sentencing for May 28.During
Friday's plea hearing, Wood County Assistant District Attorney Craig
Lambert said he plans to ask for the maximum sentence in the case,
which is nine years initial confinement and seven years extended
supervision.According
to the criminal complaint, on Aug. 18, 2008, Riverview Hospital
officials contacted Wisconsin Rapids police about the possible abuse of
a baby who had a broken leg. Werner's wife, Nancy Hetze-Werner, 32,
Rudolph, told authorities a dog was responsible but later said the baby
was alone in the bedroom with Werner when the injuries occurred.After
the infant was transported to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in
Milwaukee, doctors found more broken bones, including rib, collarbone,
leg, finger, toe and vertebrae fractures.Mason
made sure Werner understood that each of the more than 20 fractures the
child suffered could possibly be charged as separate acts, or they
could be considered the result of one act. By agreeing to the deal,
Werner won't face additional charges in the incident.Werner's
attorney, Richard Bender, said he plans to call witnesses at Werner's
sentencing, including a psychologist, nurse and social worker. Bender
also said he'd like to present a video, which will supply evidence of
the child's current physical condition.Hetze-Werner previously was placed on two years of probation for three misdemeanor counts of child neglect.

It was a crime that was originally blamed on a family dog, now a Wisconsin Rapids
man is sentenced for severely abusing his 2-month-old daughter.
25-year-old Joshua Werner will
spend the next 9 years behind bars and 7 years on extended supervision.
"The abuse that I put my daughter through was wrong, there is not a day that
goes by, that I do not think about what I did," says Joshua Werner.
Joshua Werner spoke in court, apologizing for the harm he caused to his 2-month-old daughter.
She's now 2, and suffers from injuries to her arms, legs, eyes, and spinal cord.
That's why the prosecutor asked the judge for the max sentence of 9 years in prison.
"This defendant needs to know how seriously wrong this conduct was," says Attorney Craig Lambert.
Werner's attorney says his client was abused as a child and the stress of becoming a first time parent
caused him to do what he did. "He was ill-equipped to manage the situation," says Werner's Attorney, Richard Bender.
But the judge said that's no excuse for harming his daughter.
"That does not excuse that behavior, that should more clearly than ever ward off this behavior,
that should more clearly make you aware of the damage you could cause to
that child," says Judge James Mason, "I don't want anyone to come
before this court again considering that is a valid excuse or explanation."
Werner's attorney says the child is staying with a caregiver.

A 25-year-old Wisconsin Rapids man will spend nine
years in prison for what some experts called the worst case of physical
child abuse they have seen.Joshua J. Werner was sentenced Tuesday in Wood County Circuit Court
to 11/2 years in prison for child abuse and another 71/2 years for
second-degree reckless injury of a child after breaking multiple bones
of his 2-month-old daughter almost two years ago.Wood County Judge James Mason imposed the maximum
sentence allowed by state statutes, rejecting probation, and also
ordered seven years of extended supervision."Even the most primitive people throughout history
have cared for their children and protected their children," Assistant
District Attorney Craig Lambert said. "It is the most basic instinct
people have."Before
Mason issued the sentence, defense attorney Richard Bender showed a
recent 23-minute video of Werner's daughter, now 2 years old, and her
mother, Nancy Hetze-Werner, playing with toys. In the video, the girl,
clad in a pink dress with matching bows and glasses, laughed despite
sometimes struggling to grab a violet ball with impaired hands, as her
mother looked on.Near
the back of the courtroom, Hetze-Werner, 32, Rudolph, sat with her head
down, not looking at the screen."The abuse that I put my daughter through was wrong,"
Werner said in a statement before his sentencing. "There is not a day
that goes by that I don't think about what I did. I'm sorry that I hurt
my daughter."Whatever
punishment I get, I will try to become a better person than I have been
in the past," he said. "I have learned my lesson from being a prisoner,
and I will not repeat my mistakes."Although they do not serve as an excuse, Werner's own
abusive childhood, together with an IQ in the 65 to 75 range and
"compromised judgment and emotional control," provide explanations for
his actions, Bender said."While
he understood the wrongness of his behavior, he only had partial
understanding of the (severity of the situation)," he said.According to the
criminal complaint, on Aug. 18, 2008, Riverview Hospital officials
contacted Wisconsin Rapids police about the possible abuse of a baby who
had a broken leg. Hetze-Werner told authorities a dog was responsible
but later said the baby was alone in the bedroom with Werner when the
injuries occurred.After
the infant was transported to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in
Milwaukee, doctors found more broken bones, including more than 20 rib,
collarbone, leg, finger, toe and vertebrae fractures. Citing court
documents and expert testimony, Mason shared at Tuesday's sentencing
that doctors and social workers called the injuries the worst physical
child abuse they had seen in their careers.Hetze-Werner previously was placed on two years of
probation for three misdemeanor counts of child neglect.On Tuesday, Mason also ordered Werner to maintain
absolute sobriety, have no contact with the victim or anyone younger
than 18, participate in parenting and anger management classes, undergo a
full psychological evaluation and any other counseling deemed necessary
and pay $95.63 in restitution.