Tuesday, September 27, 2011
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Belinda Houseman of Northfield Avenue Northwest testified Monday that her neighbor, Amanda C. Hall, called her Oct. 14, 2010, to say that Houseman’s 19-month-old daughter, Teiarra, suffered a minor burn while Hall was baby-sitting her.
About 90 minutes later, when Houseman looked at her daughter’s arm and hand, she realized the burn was serious and took her to St. Joseph Health Center.
St. Joe’s contacted the Trumbull County Children Services Board and advised Houseman to take the girl to the burn unit of Akron Children’s Hospital, Houseman said.
Four weeks later, Hall was charged with felony counts of assault and child endangering after authorities concluded that Hall’s explanation for Teiarra’s injuries didn’t add up.
If convicted, Hall, 31, could get up to 16 years in prison.
The case went to trial in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court on Monday before Judge John M. Stuard. No jury is hearing the case.
Teiarra came home from the Akron hospital late Oct. 15 and wore bandages on the burn for four to six weeks, Houseman said. The child will have to keep the burn covered in hot and cold weather until she’s 5years old, Houseman said.
Houseman said Hall told her Teiarra burned herself by turning on the water while she was in the bathtub after Teiarra had been given a bath.
Prosecutors, however, say Hall recklessly tortured or abused Teiarra by purposely immersing the girl’s arm in hot water.
Diane Barber, an assistant Trumbull County prosecutor, questioned Houseman extensively about the time line of events that night.
Houseman said Teiarra was fine when Houseman left Hall’s Northfield Avenue home at about 8 p.m. to go across the street to Houseman’s mother’s house.
Houseman said she was ill that day, so the women agreed that Hall would baby-sit Teiarra through the night to prevent Teiarra from getting her mother’s illness.
Hall called Houseman at 10:51 p.m. to tell her about the burn. Hall said she’d call back when Teiarra “calmed down,” Houseman said. After a couple of more phone calls between the women, Houseman went across the street to see her daughter’s injury at about 12:30 a.m., Houseman said.
When asked by Barber whether her daughter was old enough to turn on the water herself, Houseman said she didn’t think so.
Barber also projected pictures in the courtroom of the girl’s injuries, including the burn and separate marks above the girl’s left elbow and inside her left upper arm.
In cross-examination, Michael Villani, Hall’s attorney, asked Houseman about a phone call Villani said Hall made to Houseman at 9:06 p.m., but Houseman said she didn’t receive any such call.