Father of Charles City child who suffered head injury pleads guilty to lesser charge

CHARLES CITY — The father of a Charles City child charged with child endangerment after his child suffered a severe head injury has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.

23-year-old Ezekiel Larson and 20-year-old Madison Geerts were charged last September with one count of child endangerment resulting in serious injury, a Class C felony. A criminal complaint states that Larson was the only person taking care of his four-month-old child on September 6th when the child received severe head injuries.

The complaint says Larson and Geerts knew about the injuries and never arranged for medical attention for the child until four days later. The child had been vomiting, not eating nor sleeping during that time.

Larson as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors on Monday pleaded guilty to one count of child endangerment causing bodily injury, a Class D felony. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend a suspended five-year prison sentence and three years probation when he’s sentenced on November 13th.

Geerts earlier this month was sentenced to a suspended five-year prison term as part of a similar plea deal.