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Mother faces trial for alleged abuse of her baby by former York City police officer

Mother faces trial for alleged abuse of her baby by former York City police officer

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A Dauphin County woman may face trial on charges of neglecting medical care for her baby, who was allegedly physically and sexually abused by a former York City police officer.

Brianna Shoeman, 26, of Elizabethville, waived her right to a preliminary hearing in district court on Wednesday, essentially agreeing that there is enough evidence of the crime for a jury to consider at a district-level trial.

Shoeman is charged with child endangerment. She is accused of failing to get help when her 13-month-old daughter was seriously injured in her home one weekend in mid-April.

Shoeman's boyfriend, 29-year-old Steven Cugini, faces even more serious charges of child rape, aggravated sexual assault of a child and aggravated assault.

Cugini, who worked as a probation officer for the York City Police Department until his resignation shortly after the charges were filed, has so far maintained his innocence.

The baby's injuries were discovered Monday, April 15, after Shoeman dropped her daughter off at a YMCA daycare in Halifax Township, according to police. A staff member there reported seeing bruises on the baby's head, ankles and body.

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According to court documents, doctors later determined that the girl had a broken leg, deep bruising in her genital area and signs of sexual trauma.

Pennsylvania State Police investigators said Shoeman first texted daycare staff on Friday saying she was keeping the girl home and then again on Sunday saying the girl had fallen in the bathtub and been injured.

When police came to the daycare on Monday, Shoeman reportedly sent staff a text message saying her daughter's bruises were from the bathtub and that she had not cried when she fell.

According to court documents, investigators also alleged that Shoeman made other “implausible statements,” including that the girl was injured when she was knocked over by a family dog.

According to the charging documents, Shoeman was interviewed twice by a detective.

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During the second interview, police say Shoeman admitted that her initial statements were false. She allegedly told a police officer that she heard the baby crying while she was locked in the bathroom with Cugini.

Shoeman also allegedly told police that she left her daughter alone with Cugini in the months before the incident and that the girl suffered bruises and cuts. She claimed that Cugini told her the injuries were caused by the dog, charging documents say.

Investigators said text messages on Shoeman's phone showed she had conversations about the girl's injuries and that her condition was not improving. They also alleged that Shoeman admitted she knew the injuries were serious but failed to seek medical attention.

When Cugini was first questioned as part of the investigation, police said he gave inconsistent and unreliable statements. He also downplayed his role in caring for the daughter and denied seeing any injuries on the girl that weekend, police said.

The day after the investigation began, police say Cugini admitted to an investigator that he bathed the girl alone with the bathroom door locked. He allegedly explained that he locked the door to keep Shoeman's other child out of the room, investigators say.

Cugini is said to have told investigators that the girl jumped into the tub and fell on her bottom.

At Cugini's preliminary hearing in District Court in May, Detective Tavin Davis testified that Cugini never denied physically assaulting the girl, but denied sexual abuse despite the medical findings.

His case was forwarded to the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas for a possible trial after that hearing. According to court records, his next hearing is scheduled for October 10.

Cugini, who previously lived in Springettsbury Township, is currently free on $200,000 bail, according to court records.

Shoeman's case will now go to district court, and documents show her attorney intends to waive the arraignment scheduled for Nov. 8.

She is currently free on an unsecured bail of $50,000, meaning she does not have to post that amount in cash but could lose it if she does not go to court.

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— Reach Aimee Ambrose at [email protected] or on Twitter at @aimee_TYD.

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