Former East Greenville was in jail for allegedly knocking childs teeth out.

        A former East Greenville man pleaded guilty Tuesday to four misdemeanor charges from an incident with an autistic boy in July.

        Nicholas C. Kernechel, 27, formerly of the 200 block of Main Street in East Greenville, admitted guilt in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas, to one count each of endangering the welfare of children, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and making false reports to law enforcement, according to his attorney Patrick J. McMenamin Jr.

        Police initially charged Kernechel with hitting his girlfriend's autistic son and pulling out three of his teeth, causing extensive injuries, when he took care of the boy back in July.  According to the attorney, the Montgomery County DA's office withdrew multiple felony charges of aggravated assault after authorities failed to prove Kernechel knowingly injured the boy.

        McMenamin described the plea, before Judge Steven T. O'Neill, as evidence that law enforcement officials could not prove their initial claim of criminal intent.

        "The child was in Nicholas' care when he got hurt," the lawyer said. "At that point, my client was in no position to be taking care of the child because he was under the influence of certain substances. That's not an excuse for what happened."

        Kernechel will be sentenced in 90 days following an investigation by the county's probation department, according to McMenamin. He remains in Montgomery County prison with bail set at $100,000 cash.

        The Upper Perk Police arrested Kernechel on July 27 after authorities said the boy suffered "obvious and severe" facial and dental injuries while under the care of Kernechel.  According to a complaint filed by Cpl. James Lavin, the boy had three teeth knocked out and suffered bruises to his face as well as a swollen upper lip and bloody gums.

        Police said the boy's mother left Kernechel, who lived in the apartment, to care for the 4-year-old boy July 18 around 10 p.m.  The next morning, around 9 a.m., she checked on the boy and saw he had severe injuries. 

        She took him to the Upper Perk Police station, authorities said, and he was then transported by ambulance to Lehigh Valley Hospital for his injuries.

        Police described finding a bloody scene at the boy's home when they investigated, according to the complaint. Kernechel initially denied knowing what happened to the boy, according to authorities.  Several days later, however, he reportedly admitted to knowing how the boy got hurt.  Kernechel told authorities he went into the boy's room to see if he needed to use the bathroom and when the boy said he did, he attempted to pick him up off his bed, court documents said.

        According to that affidavit, Kernechel said the boy slipped through his arms and his face hit the nightstand next to his bed.  Police said despite realizing the boy's nose and mouth were bleeding, he allegedly put the boy back in bed and closed the door.

Prosecutor Clarifies Kernechel Plea

            The prosecutor who handled the case against Nicholas C. Kernechel clarified the details of his May 10 guilty plea in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas.

            According to Samantha L. R. Cauffman, an assistant district attorney for Montgomery County, Kernechel pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child, a third-degree felony, from an incident that occurred last July in East Greenville.

            Kernechel, 27, a former resident of the borough, also admitted, before Judge Steven T. O'Neill, to three additional misdemeanor charges related to the episode involving a 4-year-old Autistic boy, according to Cauffman. She said they included simple assault, reckless endangerment and providing false statements to authorities.

            "By accepting the plea, the defendant assumes responsibility for the injured suffered by the child," the prosecutor said Thursday afternoon. "They were extensive. The resolution to this case was done such that the victim would not be further traumatized."