Richmond man charged with abusing, strangling 2-year-old girl

A man from Richmond was arrested Saturday after allegedly raping and abusing a two-year-old girl, according to court documents.

J Douglas (JD) Thomas, 31, has been charged with first degree criminal abuse (child 12 or under) and first degree strangulation, jail records say. He is being held at the Madison County Detention Center.

According to an arrest citation, Richmond police were called to a house for an unresponsive two-year-old. Prior to police arriving, the infant was transported to UK Chandler Hospital for possible severe injuries to her head.

Thomas was babysitting the child while her mother took another child to the doctor’s office, according to the citation. Thomas said he was in the middle of sweeping the living room when he heard a loud noise and subsequent crying come from the two-year-old’s room.

Thomas had not checked in on the child for 20-30 minutes, according to court records.

The citation says Thomas found the infant face down, unresponsive when he entered the room. According to the citation, Thomas said he believed the child fell from a bed that stood 63 inches off the ground.

Thomas said he observed injuries to the child’s forehead and nowhere else, per the citation. Thomas also said the child had previously jumped from the bed before and was instructed by the mother, “not to go up there,” per the citation.

After officers spoke with Thomas on the scene, they then went to the hospital to meet with the child’s mother, according to court documents. The mother told police that she was unaware of her infant daughter falling or jumping from the bunk bed previously.

Officers then talked to a nurse practitioner in the Pediatric Forensic Medical Division, the citation said. She said the child had suffered a brain bleed on the right side of her head along with a “midline shift,” which is a shift of the brain past its center line.

According to the citation, the child had numerous bruises and injuries all over her body that were consistent with sexual assault and her injuries were not accidental.

Police requested a warrant to perform a rape test kit on Thomas at the hospital, according to court documents. He was then transported to jail.