Xavier Thomas Keener appears in Lewis County Superior Court on Friday, June 14, 2019.
WARRANT: Man Arrested Nearly a Year After Report, Allegedly Found With Methamphetamine
By Cody Neuenschwander
cneuenschwander@chronline.com
A Centralia man was charged with three class A felonies after a 6-month-old baby arrived at Centralia Providence Hospital last year suffering from multiple injuries allegedly caused by abuse.
Xavier M. Thomas Keener, 19, was charged with three counts of first-degree assault of a child and one count of possession of methamphetamine, after police say they found meth pipes on him when they were arresting him on a warrant.
He’s being held in the Lewis County Jail on $100,000 bail.
According to a probable cause affidavit, on July 19, 2018, police went to Providence Centralia Hospital after a 6-month-old was taken to the hospital with multiple injuries, including: “bruising over her entire lower extremities, prior fractures, rectal tearing, severe ankle swelling, and a severe infection.”
A caretaker took the child to the hospital, documents indicate, due to uncontrollable crying and severely swollen ankles.
Doctors said the injuries appeared to be non-accidental.
Court documents provide a long list of alleged abuse, reading: “(The victim’s) mother stated that (Thomas Keener) would get very frustrated with (the victim) when she would cry, would have anger outbursts around (the victim), has thrown (the victim) on the couch on one occasion, has hit (the victim) on the mouth because she was crying, has thrown toys at (the victim’s head), has stated that he wished he could push (the victim) off the couch and make it look like an accident, that he is sick and tired of (the victim) crying all the time, that it (angers him) when (the victim) looks him straight in the eye and starts screaming, and that when he would change her diaper he would get really rough with her legs.”
Other witnesses told police they witnessed Thomas Keener call the child names and hit her on the back. They saw bruises and scratches on her body.
Two more witnessed told police Thomas Keener said he would squeeze her legs when she started to cry.
Court documents in that case indicated that Thomas Keener was transient at the time, and his whereabouts were unknown. Documents in a separate case reference that he was arrested on Thursday on a warrant for the child abuse case.
While police were taking him into custody, Thomas Keener allegedly told them he had a couple meth pipes in his backpack, prompting an additional drug charge.
He appeared in custody in Lewis County Superior Court Friday afternoon, where Judge James Lawler ordered he be held on $100,000 bail on the child assault case and $10,000 on the drug case, in tune with a request from Deputy Prosecutor Joe Bassetti.
Lawler also ordered Thomas Keener to have no contact with the alleged victim.
He has an arraignment hearing on Thursday.
