WILLMAR -- Travis Dean Ryks, 25, of Willmar, made his first court appearance Monday on a first-degree assault charge for allegedly shaking a 2-month-old baby and causing him life-threatening traumatic brain injury.
Unconditional bail was set at $80,000 in Kandiyohi County District Court. Conditional bail was allowed for $5,000 cash, provided Ryks have no contact with the child, among other conditions.
His next court appearance is March 29.
According to court documentation, Ryks was taken into custody by officers around 8:40 a.m. Friday.
An arrest warrant was issued Thursday when the criminal complaint was filed in district court.
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According to the complaint, doctors involved in the child's medical treatment told investigators that the child's injuries were not accidental and that the injuries could not have been suffered in a fall off a bed, which Ryks said happened while he was caring for the child on Feb. 1.
He allegedly told the child's mother than he found the child lying face down on the floor, having fallen off a bed while Ryks was changing his diaper and ran to another room to get baby wipes. The mother arrived home and found that the infant "seemed kind of out of it, like not really that responsive."
Later on Feb. 1, the child began twitching and was taken to Rice Memorial Hospital, where he had a seizure and a CAT scan found blood on his brain. The baby was transferred to Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, where he was in intensive care until Feb. 23 and remains hospitalized.
Ryks allegedly admitted to the child's mother than he'd shaken the baby.
An HCMC doctor told investigators the child would most likely survive but "will most likely not be normal," according to the complaint.
The complaint notes that as of March 10, the child is on anti-seizure medication, has a feeding tube, is not moving his left side in a normal fashion and that his eyes are not tracking properly. The child has also had two serious seizures during which he nearly died.
