A Philadelphia man employed at a behavioral health facility has been arrested after police said he assaulted a juvenile under his care.
Authorities said Dwayne Leon Shepherd Jr., 35, was taken into custody by Cheltenham Township Police on Oct. 22, in connection with a warrant issued earlier this month. The warrant charged Shepherd with aggravated assault and related offenses.
Police allege that Shepherd, a staff member at Foundations Behavioral Health, 833 E. Butler Avenue, New Britain Borough, pulled a calm, care-dependent juvenile from a couch in a common area, placing the youth’s hand in a “gooseneck position” before escorting the juvenile to their bedroom.
When the child attempted to leave, Shepherd was allegedly seen on surveillance video forcefully pushing the juvenile back inside.
Investigators said the same video showed that when the juvenile exited the room a short time later, there were visible red marks and discoloration across the upper back and neck area — injuries that were not present before the encounter.
Shepherd is free on $400,000 unsecured bail, set by on-call Magisterial District Judge Gary Gambardella, according to court records. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 2 before Magisterial District Judge Regina Armitage.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
