Summit County dad arrested for pouring scalding water on child

COVENTRY TOWNSHIP, Ohio - A father is accused of deliberately scalding his 18-month-old son inside a Coventry Township home.

The little boy was taken to Akron Children’s Hospital for treatment with first and second degree burns, according to a police report.

The Summit County Sheriff’s Department believes the toddler's injuries were caused by hot water poured from a pan and onto the toddler's back by the child's father.

Coventry EMS responded to a home in the 31-hundred block of Lakeway Drive last Friday and transported the boy to the hospital.

Dusty Gauder, 27, was charged with felonious assault and endangering children. He's currently behind bars at the Summit County Jail.

Investigators referred to the burns as "severe."

"The child is 18 months old, so any burns on a child that age, I'm sure can be serious," said Inspector Bill Holland from the Summit County Sheriff's Department.

On Monday, Gauder appeared by video arraignment in Barberton Municipal Court. His bond was set at $150,000, but he can post 10 percent of that bond to get out of jail.

Gauder has a pretrial hearing scheduled for July 11.

Deputies believe the toddler was staying with his father, but his mother called 911 when she came to the Coventry Township home to pick up the boy and noticed the burns.

Sean Wine, who lives across the street from the suspect, noticed the deputies around the house last Friday, but didn't realize Gauder was arrested.

"It's crazy. You wouldn't think someone could do that to their own child. It's terrible, disgusting actually," Wine said.

Stark County Children Services is also investigating because the child's mother is the custodial parent and she lives in Stark County.

Edna Gauder, the suspect's grandmother, believes Dusty is innocent. Over the phone she said, "Why would he do this to his own child?"