Dundalk Dad Punches 75-Year-Old For Waving At His Baby: Police

DUNDALK, MD — A 33-year-old Dundalk dad faces a slew of charges, including attempted murder, after he attacked a 75-year-old man who waved and smiled at his baby, then paid the child's family a compliment, authorities said.

Harry Craig Enlow had driven to the Canton Car Wash near his home in Abingdon on Saturday and, while waiting, he spied a baby with its family. So Enlow waved and offered a "cute compliment" to make the family smile. But the baby's dad, Jackie Jamal Benjamin, punched Enlow in the face instead, according to authorities.

"He was knocked unconscious, fell to the ground and sustained the worst of his injuries from hitting the ground and not being able to protect himself during the fall," Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler said.

The suspect and his family fled the scene before police arrived, authorities said, but surveillance video from the car wash led deputies to Benjamin's Dundalk home, where he was arrested and taken into custody.

Benjamin has since been charged with attempted second-degree murder, attempted manslaughter, first-degree assault, second-degree assault and committal of reckless danger, according to documents filed with Harford County District Court.

He was being held without bail.

The incident was filmed, according to court documents, and showed Enlow standing next to a woman and a baby outside the car wash. In the video, Enlow leans in and “appears to wave and talk to the infant” before he is approached by a man, later identified as Benjamin. The two speak for a moment, then Benjamin puts down his bag and exchanges a few more words before he punches Enlow, The Baltimore Sun reports.

"A 33-year-old without provocation attacking a 75-year-old man. There’s absolutely nothing that justifies that," Gahler said. "He’s in jail where he should be if this is the way he’s going to act in society."

Enlow was found lying in a pool of his own blood, police said. He underwent surgery on both sides of his face to try to put his jaw back together. He also broke three ribs in the assault and endured two brain bleeds. He's expected to make a full recovery within six weeks.

To help keep Enlow smiling, his supporters have put together a Facebook page for him so others can wish him well and encourage him to keep on smiling.