Former Greenwood, Missouri, Police Chief Greg Hallgrimson pled guilty to assaulting Jonathon Zicarelli after Zicarelli tried to drown his six-month-old daughter in December 2018.
Hallgrimson was indicted in 2019 after he assaulted Zicarelli while he was in handcuffs, Fox News reported.
A former Missouri police chief who helped rescue a baby from an icy pond and later assaulted the man accused of trying to kill the infant has pleaded guilty in the case.
https://t.co/sQB4qblRxM— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) July 29, 2021
Zicarelli allegedly went to the Greenwood police station and told police he drowned his daughter in a pond in December 2018. When Hallgrimson and another officer pulled the child from the pond, she was unconscious. She later recovered from the drowning. (RELATED: Boy Rescues 5-Year-Old Girl From Drowning, Family Celebrates With A Party)
While at the police station Zicarelli said he made the decision to drown his daughter to put less stress on his wife, according to the Kansas City Star. Zicarelli’s family said he had been struggling with mental health issues, according to the outlet.
Once Hallgrimson returned to the police station, prosecutors say he threw Zicarelli to the ground, assaulted him, and told him, “you deserve to die,” Fox News reported.
Hallgrimson was placed on administrative leave immediately after the accusations of assault against Zicarelli came to light, according to the Star. He then resigned as police chief in May 2019.
After attempting to drown his daughter, Zicarelli was charged with domestic assault and child abuse.