PORTLAND — The Oregon Court of Appeals has thrown out the conviction of a man accused of felony child abuse for leaving his son in the same diaper for 14 hours.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that the Appeals Court on Wednesday ruled that a lower court jury didn’t have enough evidence to convict James Hickey of first-degree criminal mistreatment.
Hickey was accused of letting his 5-year-old son, who has autism, sit in the same diaper overnight and well into the morning in 2012. The diaper had become saturated with waste and the boy’s skin became irritated. The Appeals Court ruled that the prosecution failed to prove Hickey withheld necessary and adequate physical care because of one untimely diaper change.
Hickey served more than two years in prison for his initial conviction.
