Father punched his 2-year-old daughter in stomach and slapped her in head, police say

TACOMA, Wash. — A Tacoma father is accused of punching his 2-year-old daughter in the stomach and repeatedly slapping her in the head.

The 36-year-old was charged Wednesday with second-degree child assault. He is scheduled to be arraigned later this month.

The alleged abuse was first reported in February 2017 after a woman took the toddler to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital to have doctors look at multiple bruises on the girl’s body.

The woman told police the girl was being raised alone by her father, and the two recently moved in with her. She was concerned after seeing the dad punch the 2-year-old in the stomach and tell her to shut up, according to charging papers.

The dad also slapped his daughter in the head 10 times, threw her onto the bed and slammed her down on the toilet seat in frustration, records show.

While at the hospital in front of a nurse, the little girl allegedly said, “Why you hit me, daddy?”

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Doctors noted bruises behind the toddler’s ears and on her buttocks, arms and legs.

The father blamed the bruises on “her being a kid,” records show.

He admitted to slapping her in the head “too many” times but denied punching her in the stomach, prosecutors wrote in charging papers.

KIRO