Joseph Washington (Multnomah County Sheriff”s Office).
An Oregon man is headed to prison for a decade after he nearly killed his 20-month-old son when he punched him in the stomach, causing a perforation of his small intestine.
Joseph Washington was sentenced Friday to 121 months behind bars after a jury earlier this month convicted him of first-degree assault. The incident occurred on April 4, 2024, in Portland, according to the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said the boy’s mother had custody of him and she and Washington were no longer together.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Washington, who would watch the boy on occasion while his mom was at work, was looking after the child at his girlfriend’s house. He contacted his ex-girlfriend to say the boy was “throwing up significantly,” per prosecutors.
Washington ignored the mother’s request that he take him to the hospital and instead brought him to her. Realizing the situation was dire, she rushed him to the emergency room.
“The child underwent immediate surgery once it was discovered that his intestine was perforated and fluid and air was leaking into his abdomen,” prosecutors wrote. “His perforation was evaluated by medical experts who determined that the injury resulted from blunt force trauma and was highly concerning for child physical abuse.”
The boy’s injuries would have made it impossible to eat or hold down food as the intestine was flooding bile into the digestive system.
Washington later admitted to the child’s mother that the boy was “bothering him that night” when he became upset and punched the boy twice in the stomach.
“The defendant’s violence nearly killed this child,” said Deputy District Attorney Mihnea Moga who prosecuted the case. “Despite his attempts to ignore the child’s symptoms and persuading the mother to have the child go to sleep that night, her decision to take him to the hospital saved his life. The verdict in this case represents accountability for his gruesome behavior. Protecting children is what the community is tasked with, and I am thankful to the jury for reaching the proper conclusion and holding the defendant accountable in this case.”
Washington had an extensive criminal history which included assault, kidnapping and sex trafficking of children, according to prosecutors.
