Judge releases father pending trial in shaking case
SALEM — A Salem Superior Court judge has released a father accused of shaking his 6-month-old son during a fight with the child's mother last month, over the objection of prosecutors, who believe he is dangerous.
One of the conditions of Nicholas Pratt's release is that he will live and work with a Danvers man who is his supervisor at a company that rents amusement equipment for children's parties.
Pratt, 24, formerly of 4 Bertuccio Ave., Salem, was ordered held without bail last month by a Salem District Court judge who found that he poses a danger if released while awaiting trial on charges of assault and battery on a child, with injury; assault and battery on the child's mother; and witness intimidation.
The charges stem from an incident on Mother's Day. During an argument between Pratt and his girlfriend, the baby was allegedly slammed into a swing seat. Police found a mark over the boy's eye and bruises and red marks on his body.
Doctors later discovered skull fractures, though it's not known when those occurred. The child's mother told doctors that the child had fallen off a bed, although doctors said the baby was unable to roll over on his own.
On Tuesday, Judge Timothy Feeley overruled the district court judge and released Pratt from custody. The baby is now in the custody of the Department of Children and Families, at a location not known to Pratt or his girlfriend, the judge said.
The judge did not require Pratt to post any bail.
The judge did require a background check by the probation department for a Danvers man who has agreed to allow Pratt to live with him in his trailer.
The man, James Vosolo, is Pratt's supervisor at a company called Total Entertainment, where Pratt worked setting up inflatable bounce houses before his arrest.
Among other conditions, the judge ordered Pratt to have no unsupervised contact with children under 16 and to obey a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew.
