Andrew Ashurst (Somerset County District Attorney’s Office).
A man in Pennsylvania is facing multiple felonies for allegedly attacking a pregnant woman and her unborn child and refusing to let her call 911 even after she went into labor. Andrew Ashurst was taken into custody on Tuesday and charged with one count each of aggravated assault of an unborn child, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, unlawful restraint, simple assault, and harassment, authorities announced.
According to a news release from the Somerset County District Attorney’s Office, Ashurst, a Berlin, Pennsylvania, native, attacked the pregnant victim after the two got into a “verbal altercation.” The victim’s name and age were not disclosed by authorities.
“Ashurst pushed the pregnant victim into the toilet causing her to strike her head, struck her in the appendix area, pulled her around the house by her hair, and slapped and struck her in the face with a cell phone,” authorities said in the release. “It is further alleged that the Defendant refused to allow the victim to call emergency services when she started to go into labor during the assault.”
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Upon arriving at the scene, first responders with the Pennsylvania State Police said they found the victim with visible bruising on her back, arms, eye, cheek, and forehead.
Ashurst was transported to the Somerset County Jail where he is currently waiting to appear before a judge for his arraignment.
“As a mother, I understand the vulnerability of a woman and her unborn child and I am appalled that anyone would jeopardize the lives of these two people,” District Attorney Molly Metzgar said in a statement following Ashurst’s arrest. “The allegations are unfathomable and I plan to punish these crimes to the fullest extent of the law.”
