AUGUSTA — An Augusta man accused of seriously injuring his baby daughter pleaded not guilty Monday to an indictment charging him with two counts of aggravated assault and one count of assault.

The charges against Kevin Michael Peaslee, 21, stem from an incident Dec. 21 at the apartment he and the baby’s mother, Virginia Trask, 17, shared on Capitol Street. Peaslee denies allegations that he violently shook his 6-month-old daughter, Aleah Peaslee, and left her with serious permanent injuries.

Aleah is reportedly at Maine Medical Center in Portland, suffering from brain injuries and blindness.

Peaslee was pulled over by police as he drove to get help for the baby. “He did seek to bring his child to get help,” District Attorney Maeghan Maloney said. “He ran a stop sign and was pulled over by police.”

Maloney said Peaslee was stopped at 2:51 p.m. at the intersection of Capitol Street and Capitol Street extension. Officer Peter Cloutier saw medical attention was needed and brought the baby and Peaslee to a nearby fire station, Deputy Police Chief Jared Mills said.

Defense attorney Lisa Whittier, who represented Peaslee as lawyer of the day, told the judge she did not believe that all the medical evidence was in yet about the baby’s condition, suggesting the seriousness of the baby’s injuries is not yet fully known.

Peaslee was arrested Friday in Augusta, shortly after the Kennebec County grand jury handed up the indictment. He was arraigned in Augusta District Court via video link with the Kennebec County jail. Judge Charles Dow entered the plea of not guilty on his behalf.

Maloney asked Dow to keep bail at $25,000 cash, which was set with the initial warrant.

“The child in question was only 6 months old and is still struggling with injuries and will have injuries for the rest of her life,” she told Dow.

However, Whittier said neither Peaslee nor his parents can post $25,000 cash bail, and she requested a surety alternative. Dow agreed to an alternative bail of $50,000 worth of real estate, but said both bails would require Peaslee to be under a Maine Pretrial Supervision Program contract.

Other conditions ban Peaslee from contact with Trask and with his daughter and subject him to a curfew of 8 p.m.-6 a.m.

Whittier said that if freed on bail, Peaslee would live at his parents’ home on Weeks Mills Road in Augusta.

Maloney objected, saying that Trask is living there. Whittier countered by saying there were other places Trask could live.

Whittier said Peaslee’s doctor scheduled him for a diagnostic evaluation Tuesday because of mental health issues.

“Mr. Peaslee has been very cooperative since the beginning of this case,” she said. “He is a high school graduate and he is seeking a job. He is not a threat to the judicial process, he is not a threat to society, and he is not a flight risk of any sort.”

Peaslee said he did not intend to apply for court-appointed counsel and expected his parents to hire one to represent him in the charges.

However, he later agreed to the judge’s suggestion that he fill out the paperwork for a court-appointed lawyer.

Outside the hearing, Maloney said that Trask was at work when the baby was injured. She also said the state Department of Health and Human Services is looking into the case.

Shortly after Peaslee’s arrest, Maloney said, “Shaking a baby is a horrific crime that often leads to death. In this case the 6-month-old little girl will be blind for life among other serious health consequences. Never shake a baby. Call for help if you feel yourself losing control.”

She also said that officials learned Peaslee and Trask had been given a video or seen a video in the hospital after the baby was born that warns about the dangers of shaking an infant.

“Parenting is the most difficult job there is,” she said.

Betty Adams can be contacted at 621-5631 or at:

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

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