A 17-year-old Manitowoc County youth avoids trial by pleading guilty to First Degree Reckless Homicide in the 2018 death of Ethan Hauschultz.
Damian Hauschultz had also been charged with Three counts of Child Abuse-Intentionally Causing Harm and Three Counts of Substantial Battery-Intentionally Causing Bodily Harm, which were dismissed but read into the record Friday by Manitowoc County Circuit Judge Jerilyn Dietz.
Authorities responded to a call at a local hospital on April 7th 2018 for an unresponsive child suffering from multiple injuries. The original complaint stated that 50-year-old Timothy Hauschultz instructed Damian to make the 7-year-old Ethan, a foster child in their Town of Newton home, carry a nearly 45 lbs. log around their yard as a form of punishment.
Damian also allegedly shoveled snow on the child along with standing on him and striking him nearly one hundred times.
Ethan was pronounced dead later that evening with hypothermia, multiple blunt force trauma and a broken rib as official causes of death.
Damian’s guilty plea means no trial will be held. He’s free on bail and will be sentenced September 2nd at 1:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Timothy Hauschultz remains in the County Jail on charges of Felony Murder, Child Abuse, Battery and Contribute to the Delinquency Death.
His trial is scheduled for December while 38-year-old Tina McKeever-Hauschultz was found guilty earlier this year and sentenced to five years in prison on charges of Failure/Prevent Mental Harm to a Child and Child Abuse/Failure/Prevent Great Harm- all felonies.
