Prosecutors: Baby should be removed from South Huntingdon home due to deplorable conditions

A 10-month baby allegedly assaulted by his father should be removed from the custody of relatives because of deplorable conditions of their home, Westmoreland County prosecutors said.

Assistant District Kelly Hammers on Thursday filed emergency petitions seeking to modify bond conditions for the baby’s mother, aunt, grandmother and grandmother’s boyfriend that would prevent them from having unsupervised contact with the child.

Hammers said a court order signed by Family Court Judge Jim Silvis gave custody of the child to his aunt, Tiffany Hart, 25, who was charged this year with four counts of child endangerment in connection with the living conditions of the home in Yukon, South Huntingdon.

Four children live in the home — the baby, a 4-year-old and twin 6-year-olds — which is littered with garbage and infested with insects, police said.

The baby’s biological mother, Elizabeth Hart, 22, grandmother Tara Hart, 38, and boyfriend, Jason Welch, 22, were charged with multiple counts of child endangerment.

Police said Welch had a physical altercation with the women in January with the baby present.

All four are free on bond while they await preliminary hearings before District Judge Charles Moore. Those hearings were delayed as each attempted to hire lawyers, and no new dates have been set due to the state-ordered suspension of some hearings due to the coronavirus outbreak.

“We don’t know when the next hearing could be scheduled. Normally, we would just wait until the preliminary hearing but I don’t know when it will be heard and what will happen to the baby,” Hammers said.

Hammers said Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Mears is expected to conduct an emergency hearing next week via video conferencing on the prosecution’s bond modification request seeking to prohibit Welch and the Harts from having unsupervised contact with the baby.

The baby’s biological father, Taylor J. Shipley, 20, of Hunker, is in jail in lieu of $500,000 bond as he awaits trial on charges of aggravated assault and child endangerment in connection with injuries police say he inflicted on his then-3-month-old infant.

Police contend the child sustained three broken ribs, bruising and a brain hemorrhage after the incident last September.