Man Accused Of Breaking Toddler’s Leg – Mom Facing Child Endangerment Charge

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A Kalispell man is facing charges of felony assault on a minor, after allegedly breaking a toddler’s leg in February.

Terry Larry Chandler II, and the child’s mother, Julia Susan Sellman appeared in Flathead County Justice Court on Thursday.

Sellman faces felony criminal endangerment charges. Prosecutors said that officers from the Kalispell Police Department responded to Kalispell Regional Medical Center on February 5, for reports of suspicious injuries upon a minor.

Sellman told law enforcement that the toddler had fallen down the stairs however KRMC staff disputed that claim, saying that the nature of the child’s injuries were not consistent with a fall.

Court documents reveal the child’s leg was fractured and had bruises on the majority of the child’s body, including the forehead, face ears, buttocks, and ribs.

Sellman reportedly gave authorities various reasons as to how the toddler sustained those injuries but eventually admitted that Chandler, her boyfriend, caused the bruises over the course of a few days.

Prosecutors said Sellman also admitted that Chandler was “too rough” with the child and that she had been worried for the toddler’s well-being in the past.

Detectives then interviewed Chandler, who gave different accounts as to how the toddler’s leg broke, including falling off a couch. He later admitted to breaking the child’s leg when he forced the toddler to sit backward in a chair as a form of punishment.

Court documents say that Chandler stated the child went “stiff as a board” and said he had to pry the child’s leg “back at an angle”, which is how the leg got fractured.

Chandler faces up to 20 years in the Montana State Prison if convicted and Sellman faces up to 10 years.