Deputies arrested a Jackson County man they allege sexually assaulted a 10-month old infant, leaving the child with extensive bleeding and life-threatening injuries, according to a criminal complaint filed in Jackson County Magistrate Court.
Benjamin Ryan Taylor, 32, of Cottageville, reportedly assaulted his girlfriend's infant daughter sometime late Sunday night or early Monday morning while everyone else in the apartment was asleep, the complaint states.
The baby was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where an emergency doctor told deputies that the baby's traumatic injuries were likely suffered several hours before arrival, according to the criminal complaint.
"Additionally, Taylor did nothing in an effort to save the victim's life as a result of the said injuries sustained in the sexual encounter," the complaint reads.
Dr. Steve Eshenaur told Jackson sheriff's deputies the baby's injuries were consistent with a violent sexual assault, as well as a violent shaking or a striking of the baby's face, according to the complaint. The baby's core temperature was 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and the baby had petechiae in her eyes - small red spots that are caused by bleeding in the skin.
Jackson County Sheriff Tony Boggs said three other children of varying ages were living in the apartment. Boggs said Tuesday afternoon that the infant had been moved to a hospital in Charleston.
The child's mother, Amanda Leigh Adkins, told deputies that Taylor had been staying with her at her Meadowlark Lane apartment in Ripley. The sheriff did not know how long Taylor had been staying there.
While everyone else was asleep Sunday night, Taylor took the baby down to the basement of the apartment where he was doing laundry. He told deputies that he laid the baby down onto a blanket on the floor.
Adkins went down to the basement a few hours later. She saw the lights had been turned off, and she found her baby naked and bleeding on the floor and Taylor there in the room, according to the complaint. She called for help between 4:30 and 5 a.m., Boggs said.
Taylor told deputies that he tried to change the baby's diaper earlier, according to the criminal complaint, but that he didn't know what had happened. He told investigators that he blacked out.
Taylor showed the deputies blood that was on his chest and stomach, according to the complaint. As the deputies put Taylor in handcuffs, he tried "vigorously" to wipe something off his groin area, police said.
Down in the basement, deputies found blankets and clothes covered in blood, according to the complaint.
Taylor is being held at the South Central Regional Jail on a $2 million bond. If convicted of the first-degree sexual assault charge on the baby, he could face between 25 and 100 years in prison, in addition to thousands of dollars in fines.
Reach Jake Jarvis at jake.jarvis@wvgazettemail.com, Facebook.com/newsroomjake, 304-348-7939 or follow @NewsroomJake on Twitter.