Joseph Dean Cree, 35, Burlington, is charged in district court in Minot with Class B felony abuse of a child under the age of 6.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed with the court, Cree admitted to police that he had been using methamphetamine and heroin for several days prior to the incident on June 3. The child struck Cree in the leg to try to get him to wake up. Cree first swatted the child away and then allegedly struck the child in the face with a closed fist, causing the child to fall backwards into a coffee table and then to the floor. Cree then picked the child up and tried to comfort him. A home security video system recorded the incident and the child’s mother later discovered it and confronted Cree. She reported the incident to police.

Cree made an initial appearance on the charge on Tuesday before Judge Stacy Louser, who said she could not set bond because Cree’s lawyer had not shown up for his scheduled court appearance. Cree explained to the judge that he had been arrested in Bismarck on other charges and those cases have just been resolved, which was the reason for the delay in his appearance on the court cases in Ward County.