Man Accused Of Abusing Texarkana Infant Charged With Abusing Twin

TEXARKANA, Texas–A man accused of physically abusing a 3-month-old girl earlier this month is facing a new charge of injury to a child involving her twin brother.

Michael Jerome Cridell, 22, was allegedly the only person alone with the children when both suffered skull fractures on June 4, according to a probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday.

Cridell was charged after the mother of the twins took the baby girl to a local emergency room, where scans revealed she had a skull fracture. The baby girl was transported to Children’s Hospital in Little Rock for additional care.

A doctor at Children’s reportedly told investigators with the Texarkana Texas Police Dept. that the baby girl also had a broken femur bone in her leg and five fractured ribs which appeared to be older and healing, the affidavit said.

Personnel with Child Protective Services arranged for the baby girl’s twin brother and an older sibling to be checked at an area hospital where it was determined that the 3-month-old boy had suffered a skull fracture at the same time as his sister, the affidavit said.

Cridell is now facing two counts of injury to a child with serious bodily injury.

If convicted, he faces five to 99 years or life in prison on each count.

Cridell is represented by the Bowie County Public Defender’s Office.

The case has been assigned to 202nd District Judge John Tidwell.