BANGOR, Maine — A New Hampshire man accused of placing his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son in a clothing dryer at her Bangor home last month and turning on the machine was indicted Wednesday by the Penobscot County grand jury on one count each of aggravated assault and assault on a child less than 6 years old.
Adam Morton, 27, of Berlin, New Hampshire, is free on $2,500 cash bail, according to personnel at the Penobscot County Jail. Conditions include no contact with the victim or children under age 6.
He was released from jail on Sept. 19.
Morton, who was dating the boy’s mother, was arrested Aug. 28 in New Hampshire and extradited to Maine.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 5 and plead not guilty at the Penobscot Judicial Center.
The boy suffered second-degree burns to his back and arms with a distinct pattern that matched the drum of the dryer, had blisters on his feet, bruises all over his body and cuts that matched bolts on the inside of the appliance, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in court by Bangor police Detective Tim Shaw.
“Mr. Morton admitted that on August 2, 2014, he put [the boy] into the dryer, shut the door and turned it on,” Shaw wrote in the affidavit, referring to the injured child. “He stated that [the child] was not in the dryer for very long. He indicated that the dryer made only one revolution.”
Police seized the dryer and through testing determined it could reach temperatures of up to 180 degrees in just three minutes.
If convicted of aggravated assault, a Class B crime, Morton faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000 if convicted of the Class C assault on a child charge.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence and would like to talk with an advocate, call 866-834-4357, TRS 800-787-3224. This free, confidential service is available 24/7 and is accessible from anywhere in Maine.
BDN writer Nok-Noi Ricker contributed to this report.