Dispatcher sentenced for illegal child conduct

ANDERSON, S.C. (AP) — A former 911 dispatcher in Anderson County has been sentenced to house arrest and probation for illegal conduct toward a child.

Branden Newton pleaded guilty in Anderson on Thursday. The case involved a 5-month-old girl who suffered two skull fractures in 2010.

Circuit Judge Alex Macaulay sentenced Newton to six months house arrest and five years’ probation during the hearing attended by about 40 of Newton’s relatives and friends.

Prosecutors had sought up to five years in prison, arguing that Newton lied about the circumstances under which the child was injured. Prosecutors said Newton originally said the child fell from a couch but later said the girl fell from a kitchen counter.