CASPER — A 31-year-old Evansville man who fled the state in January 2023 following an investigation he abused and nearly killed a toddler stood in chains and jail garb to face four felony charges in Natrona County District Court on Thursday.
One of those charges, aggravated child abuse, involved a then 1-year-old boy that was “nearly a homicide,” according to an assistant district attorney.
Court records allege Scott John Erskine inflicted significant head trauma, among other injuries, to the toddler who was found unconscious. The boy also had a fractured tibia that was healing, according to court documents.
Erskine stood beside his attorney, Kurt Infanger, before Judge Catherine Wilking and read along on the charge sheet on the podium before him as the judge outlined the allegations against him that include one count of aggravated child abuse, three counts of child abuse and two misdemeanor charges of unlawful contact and child endangerment.
All the charges stem from Erskine’s alleged actions between Jan. 1, 2019, and Nov. 16, 2022, involving three children, a boy born in 2021, a girl born in 2020 — both belonging to his ex-girlfriend — and a boy born in 2013, the son of his brother’s girlfriend.
An arrest affidavit states that Erskine first came to the attention of investigators in Oct. 22, 2022, when the father of Erskine’s girlfriend’s children showed photos of suspected abuse marks to Natrona County Sheriff’s Department investigators that depicted bruising on the children’s faces and bodies.
‘Something Wrong’
On Nov. 16, 2022, Erskine called 911 to report “there’s something wrong with my baby.”
When law enforcement officers and Evansville police arrived, they found the then 1-year-old male unresponsive. The child had suffered seizures.
The affidavit states a physician at Banner Wyoming Medical Center found bleeding to the gums, bruising to the toddler’s right ear, bruising to tip of his penis, extensive bruising to the right calf and shin, bruising to the right cheek and extensive bruising over the buttocks.
A CT scan showed “acute right-sided subdural hematoma involving the frontal lobe” or bleeding in the brain and possible “retinal hemorrhage on the right,” the affidavit says.
A skeletal survey showed the child had a fractured left tibia in the “state of healing.”
Court records show the child was sent to Denver Children’s Hospital, and a physician there described the retinal hemorrhaging “as one of the most extreme cases he had ever seen.” The doctor said he was concerned about the development of the child’s eyesight.
The Child Protection Team at the hospital concluded that the child “might have been thrown, possibly shaken, or both,” according to the affidavit.
The physician said the head injuries to the child were “abusive injuries,” court records show.
Investigators interviewed Erskine and his girlfriend about how the child was injured. Both denied knowing how it happened.
Erskine said he was cooking dinner and found the then 1-year-old boy pulling the hair of his 2-year-old sister. He brought the girl into the living room. Erskine said he heard a noise, went back to the bedroom and found the boy “fussing.”
“I pick him up, take him to his mom and call the cops. What else am I supposed to do?” He allegedly told an officer during an interview on Nov. 17, 2022.
Mother Talks
While initially protecting Erskine, the mother of the toddlers went to the Natrona County Sheriff’s Office on Jan. 31, 2023, as their investigation continued and told investigators he had left the area Jan. 9, 2023.
The girlfriend told police she lied to investigators out of fear of Erskine and that he was responsible for the injuries. She alleged he controlled her finances, movements and nearly every aspect of her life and that Erskine would kill her if she told the truth, the affidavit states.
She said she had seen Erskine pick up her son by the ankles and dangle him upside down and swing him around by the ankles upside down. She believes that could have caused the child’s tibia fracture. She also described Erskine pushing the 2-year-old with his foot on the floor and hit him with his shoe “hard enough to snap his head around.”
The girlfriend alleged that Erskine threatened to kill her, and she had nowhere else to go.
On the night of Nov. 16, she said she was in the children’s room playing with her son as Erskine made dinner. She went into the living room and kitchen, fixed a plate for her daughter and heard her son crying. Erskine went into the room, she heard the crying stop, and then saw Erskine come out of the room with the toddler in his arms.
She described the boy as “stiff” and “lifeless.” She said Erskine then called 911 as she performed CPR before EMTs arrived.
The girlfriend also told police she previously had witnessed Erskine lift up her daughter by an arm to his shoulder height and drop her to the floor “on her butt.”
‘Belts And Cords’
A police interview with the son of Erskine’s brother’s girlfriend alleged that while he and his mother lived with Erskine and his brother in 2019 and 2020, both of the men struck him with “belts and cords.”
The child told police that at one point Erskine picked him up, slammed him against a wall and dropped him “on my butt.”
The boy also told investigators when he was pinned up against the wall that “he was struggling to breathe.”
In court Thursday, Erskine responded to Judge Wilking’s questions about how he pled to the charges against him.
“Not guilty,” he said.
Infanger asked the judge to consider dropping his $50,000 cash bond to $30,000 cash or surety.
Assistant District Attorney Brandon Rosty argued against it, pointing out that he fled the state before.
“The first victim was very nearly a homicide,” he said.
“I believe bond is appropriate and will continue it,” Judge Wilking said.
Jail records show Erskine was arrested on the charges Aug. 30.
The charge of aggravated child abuse for the head trauma to the then 1-year-old carries a penalty of up to 25 years in prison. The three charges of child abuse are for alleged actions to the 1-year-old, and his brother’s girlfriend’s son, carry a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
Erskine is also charged with unlawful contact stemming from an incident Oct. 31, 2022, with his ex-girlfriend. That charge carries a potential six-month jail sentence and $750 fine.
The charge of child endangerment stems from his alleged actions picking up his ex-girlfriend’s daughter and dropping her to the floor sometime between May. 1 and Nov. 16, 2022. It carries a potential penalty of one-year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Erskine remains in the Natrona County jail.
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
