EVERETT — Eryk Woodruff had discovered corn on the cob. He only had four teeth but he gnawed at the sweet corn with glee.
That was before Matthew Christiansen.
Now, Eryk, 2, is fed nutrition shakes, along with anti-seizure medication, through a tube in his stomach.
He can’t chase after his big sister anymore. He has to relearn how to walk, something the toddler had mastered when he was 10 months old.
Eryk laughs less, hurts more. His future is uncertain.
That also is because of Christiansen.
A judge on Thursday sentenced the Everett man, 32, to more than 10 years in prison for beating Eryk when the boy was 15 months old.
For four days in September, Christiansen baby-sat Eryk and the boy’s 3-year-old sister while the children’s parents were at work.
For four days, the 300-pound man assaulted Eryk.
“I put my trust in the wrong person and my son is paying the price for it,” Eryk’s mother, Rachel Pierce, said. “He has a life sentence.”
The boy suffered a broken jaw, rib fractures, a broken arm and a severe head injury that required surgery. He’s scheduled to go back under the knife next Friday to replace damaged bone in his skull with a plastic cap.
“I can’t imagine anyone doing this, but he did. What he did was horrible,” Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Ronald Castleberry said during the sentencing hearing.
Public defender Caroline Mann said Christiansen’s actions on Sept. 13 were out of character for the father of two. He and his wife were in the early stages of filing for a divorce. He was watching four children while alone, including his own son, who at 2 was starting to misbehave.
“He found himself overwhelmed,” she said.
Christiansen has taken responsibility for his actions, Mann said. Last month he pleaded guilty to first-degree assault of a child.
As part of the plea agreement, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Tammy Bayard agreed to recommend a seven-year prison term, the low end of the standard sentencing range.
Castleberry on Thursday said he couldn’t in good conscience sentence Christiansen to anything less than the maximum penalty.
The abuse wasn’t a momentary fit of anger, Castleberry said.
Christiansen repeatedly beat Eryk. The abuse ended when Christiansen’s wife found Eryk unconscious and called 911.
The boy was rushed to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and spent nearly two weeks in intensive care.
While Christiansen may have been overwhelmed with circumstances in his life, that was no excuse to break a child’s jaw, ribs or arm, Castleberry said.
“Eryk will never be the same,” the judge said.
Eryk left her arms healthy and happy, his mother said. He was returned battered, bruised and forever changed.
The boy’s father, Russell Woodruff, told the judge he once looked forward to watching his son play basketball and football.
Now, he hopes his son will be able to walk and talk again.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
