Missouri couple accused of putting infant in microwave

An eastern Missouri couple faces child abuse charges for allegedly putting their infant son into a microwave, in addition to other abuses, authorities said.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, citing a report from the Park Hills Daily Journal, said Derick Boyce-Slezak and Mikala Boyce-Slezak, both 22 and from Park Hills, were charged Tuesday in circuit court in St. Francois County with felony abuse or neglect of a child.

The injuries were discovered when the infant, a boy who was younger than 4 months, was taken to a hospital in April for a rash on his face that turned out to be second-degree facial burns and head wounds, according to court documents.

A state social worker said at a hearing Monday that the mother blamed the head wounds on the father for dropping the baby while imitating a TV commercial.

The social worker, a member of the Children’s Division of the Missouri Department of Social Services, said Mikala Boyce-Slezak believes the burn occurred when her husband put the baby in a microwave and briefly turned it on.

At the hospital, the parents claimed the burns were caused by a cleaning agent,

Both parents are being held in the St. Francois County Jail. Bail for each has been set at $500,000.

Cox Media Group