CULLMAN COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A Falkville man has been indicted by a grand jury for child abuse following allegations that he beat his ex-girlfriend’s one-year-old daughter.

Dalton Marsh, 21, was arrested in June after court records say he struck the baby “on or about the head.” Pictures shared by the family show the extent of those alleged strikes, as bruises look to cover Acelynn’s face.

Shania Casey, Acelynn’s mother, said she left her child in the car with Marsh, her boyfriend at the time, on May 4, 2023, while she went inside a fast food restaurant. When she returned less than 10 minutes later, Casey said Marsh had Acelynn with him in the driver’s seat, “holding her forcefully up against his chest as she was screaming, crying.”

Casey described seeing bruises and marks all over her daughter’s face and head. When she asked Marsh what happened, Casey said Marsh claimed he took Acelynn out of her car seat because she was throwing up.

He claimed the baby “wiggled out of his arm” as he attempted to clean up the mess, and “fell and hit the side of the car seat and the middle door frame,” causing the bruises, according to Casey.

Four days after the alleged incident, Casey wrote that Marsh “admitted to physically abusing her” to investigators.

Jennifer Douthitt, Acelynn’s grandmother, told News 19 that the toddler is doing better, but said she suffers from sleep terrors and doesn’t like being around men she doesn’t know.

“[Acelynn] is a very spunky and sassy baby,” Douthitt gushed. “[And] full of energy!”

A Facebook group, Justice For Acelynn has provided updates on not only her progress and recovery but on the case against Marsh, as well.

On August 17, Marsh was indicted by a Cullman County grand jury, court records show. He was placed on a $15,000 bond when he was arrested, though a motion by his defense team requested for his bond to be lowered.

An arraignment has been set for Friday, October 13.