A Malden man accused of smashing a car’s windshields with a baseball bat and injuring a 1-year-old girl inside is set to appear in court this week, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
Clifford Jones, 66, had been arraigned earlier this month on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (baseball bat) on a child under 14, malicious destruction of property, possession of a class D substance, selling unstamped cigarettes, and selling cigarettes without a license.
The judge had ordered Jones held on $7,500 bail. Jones is due back in court on Wednesday for a pre-trial hearing.
Boston Police on July 18 at around 6:15 a.m., responded to a call for a possible hit-and-run motor vehicle accident in the area of 150 Camden St., in the South End. Officers were told that the alleged victim was driving after the suspect in the area of Massachusetts Avenue and Tremont Street.
The alleged victim flagged down Boston police and directed them toward the suspect, later identified as Jones. Jones had allegedly backed into the victim’s car, sparking an argument between the two when they both got out to check the damage.
Jones then allegedly got a baseball bat and began smashing the front and back windshields of the victim’s vehicle. The victim’s 1-year-old daughter was in the back seat and glass came raining down on her, causing cuts and lacerations.
The child was evaluated on scene by Boston EMS and transported to Boston Medical Center for lacerations and glass contamination.
A witness on scene corroborated the victim’s statement, and told officers he saw Jones retrieving a bat and smash the windows of the victim’s vehicle. Officers saw the damage to both the front and rear windshields.
Jones admitted to police that he bumped the victim’s vehicle and after he got out to check for damage, the victim began screaming that his child was in the car. Jones told police he fled the area because he feared for his safety, and that the victim chased him for several blocks before police arrived.
Another witness told officers both vehicles were seen operating at a high speed, running through red lights, and driving the wrong way on one-way streets chasing each other.
An aluminum bat was found at the scene. Hundreds of packs of cigarettes affixed with New Hampshire tax stamps, along with various nicotine and THC oil cartridges and packages of marijuana, were recovered from Jones’ vehicle.
Jones has an “extensive” Massachusetts and out-of-state record, dating back to 1975, according to the Suffolk DA’s Office.
“This was a terrifying sequence of events for the victim and for the victim’s child,” Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden said. “It’s tragic that such a young child witnessed this and sustained injuries severe enough to be hospitalized. Minor motor vehicle accidents happen all the time. But to react with such violence, and with no hesitation in placing a child in danger, is intolerable.”
————————————————
