BY DARRELL HALEN

The father of a baby boy who suffered more than two dozen broken bones has been indicted on assault charges.

Gurrie A. Fandozzi II, 40, faces five counts of first degree assault. The indictments, handed down by a Rockingham County grand jury, allege Fandozzi caused spinal fractures, arm fractures, leg fractures, rib fractures and a skull fracture.

The abuse allegedly occurred between June and August 2006.

Fandozzi faces 10 to 30 years in prison on each charge if convicted.

Fandozzi and his wife, Tammy, came under suspicion after emergency workers were called to their Squire Armour Road home in Windham on Aug. 2.

Emergency responders had been notified the baby, then 6 months old, was unconscious and not breathing.

Windham Police Chief Gerald Lewis said at the time that the alleged abused – more than two dozen fractures were either fresh or in various stages of healing – was the worst case of child abuse he had seen in his career.

The parents were not cooperating with a criminal investigation and had hired lawyers, Lewis said.

The boy recently turned 1. The indictments indicate Gurrie Fandozzi is now living in Nashua.

Gurrie Fandozzi’s Salem lawyer, Steven G. Shadallah, said through a recent statement that his client is innocent and that he believes he will be cleared of any wrongdoing.

Shadallah said he believes authorities focused on his client because he was a stay-at-home father. Shadallah said there were “no known witnesses and no physical evidence to prove that Fandozzi or anyone else caused the child’s broken bones.”

He also said “the state does not know how the child’s bones were broken, when they were broken, where they were broken or by who, if anyone.”

The fact his client may have been with the child more than anyone else is not sufficient grounds to prosecute him, Shadallah said.

The baby was seen by the family’s pediatrician at all regularly scheduled visits, including the day before he was rushed to the hospital, according to Shadallah.

A recent statement issued by Tammy Fandozzi’s Derry lawyer, Brian Germaine, said Tammy Fandozzi does not believe her husband harmed their son.

According to the statement, Tammy Fandozzi is distraught over the charges against her husband, and she said that she is a good mother who would have taken steps to protect her children if she believed anyone had harmed them.

Germaine’s statement also made reference to the trip to the pediatrician, saying they made the Aug. 1 visit was made because their son was suffering from respiratory congestion. The doctor did not discover any bruising or broken bones or signs he had been abused, according to the statement.

Early the next day, the baby had trouble breathing, Tammy Fandozzi called for an ambulance, a dispatcher advised the parents how to administer CPR and her husband applied CPR until the ambulance arrived, according to the statement.

The baby was transported to Parkland Medical Center in Derry and airlifted to Children’s Hospital in Boston.

According to the statement, medical records indicate the baby suffered cardiac arrest at Children’s Hospital because of a misplaced breathing tube and CPR was given by the hospital staff.

The boy and his sister are now in the exclusive care of their mother, according to the statement. 

Reams said there are no charges against Tammy Fandozzi. Asked if he expected any, he replied, “That’s still an ongoing investigation.”

Windham Police Chief Gerald Lewis recently said he’s confident investigators conducted a high quality investigation.

“We worked very diligently and very hard from the date we learned about this,” Lewis said. “Because we had a child who couldn’t speak for himself and family members unwilling to speak with us, it was extremely important to work with the medical community. Working with the medical community and the Rockingham County Attorney’s office, we put a lot of time into this.”

Reams said he expects Gurrie Fandozzi will be arraigned in Superior Court in the next few weeks. Following the arraignment, evidence will be turned over to Fandozzi and the case will be scheduled for trail, Reams said.