BELCHERTOWN, Mass. (WWLP) – Keith Truehart pleaded guilty in Hampshire Superior Court on Tuesday to 3 counts of assault and battery on a child causing serious bodily injury and 1 count of misleading police.

According to Mary Carey of the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, the 31-year-old Belchertown man was sentenced to 3 years in state prison for the assault and battery charges, and 5 years of supervised probation for misleading the police.

Carey said that Truehart admitted to beating the 9-month-old. He was placed on the Massachusetts “most wanted” list after he ran away from authorities after the assault. Police eventually found Truehart, in Belchertown, hiding under the kitchen sink of the baby’s mother, Melonie Cummings.

Assistant District Attorney Caleb Weiner, who prosecuted the case, said, “The defendant’s reprehensible actions warranted a state prison sentence and a lengthy probationary period upon release. The Commonwealth is relieved that the victim recovered from her injuries and is in a safe environment now.”

While on probation, Truehart will not be allowed to have contact with any child under the age of 18, and during the first year of probation, he will have to wear a GPS monitoring device. Also, he must remain drug and alcohol free and participate in drug test screenings.

Cummings is currently serving an 18-month sentence in the House of Correction after she pleaded guilty in May to being an accessory to a crime after the fact and misleading police.

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