Peabody Man Accused Of Assaulting 4-Year-Old Boy

PEABODY, MA — Gloucester Police say a Peabody man beat his girlfriend's son, leaving the 4-year-old with a black eye, a hand-shaped mark on his backside and red marks on his back and stomach. William Brown, 29, of 13 Birch Street in Peabody, was ordered held without bail after pleading not guilty to charges of assault and battery on a child, causing injury, and child endangerment. The child was taken to Boston Children's Hospital with injuries a paramedic called "some of the most significant he had seen," according to a police report.

Brown and the boy's mother had been dating for about a month, according to the Salem News, which first reported this story. When police responded to the woman's home, Brown offered inconsistent versions of what happened, and the child told police "He hit me," the newspaper said.

Correction: Due to an editing error, and earlier version of this article contained a dropped word. William Brown pleaded not guilty to the charges at his arraignment.

For more on this story, see the Salem News.