CLEARFIELD – A Woodland man whose young child was found dressed in only a T-shirt and diaper while standing in a roadway was sent to state prison during sentencing court Tuesday.
Raymond Matthew Nestlerode, 37, was charged by state police with felony endangering the welfare of a child after his daughter was found standing in the middle of Main Street in Bradford Township on June 1 at 11 a.m.
After he was taken to the jail, he was found to have a bag of marijuana in his pants pocket.
Judge Paul Cherry sentenced Nestlerode to 15 months to three years in state prison for the endangerment charge and felony contraband/controlled substance. The two sentences will run concurrent with each other.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, when police arrived on-scene, a woman explained that she saw the child nearly get struck by a car in the road. She took the child to where she believed she lived, but no one responded to her loud knocking.
The troopers entered through an open door and noted the interior was “very messy” and dirty. At first, they thought there might have been a home invasion or burglary, but then considered someone might have had a medical emergency.
They shouted and banged on the open door several minutes before hearing someone respond from the second floor. The male’s voice was low and difficult to hear so he was ordered to come to them.
It took him several minutes for him to get downstairs. When Nestlerode appeared, he was disheveled and wearing pajama pants. He admitted he was the father of the child and the sole caretaker at that time.
He said she had been upstairs with him and was not able to answer how long it had been since he had seen her.
Nestlerode then became insulting and disorderly, losing interest in talking about the child. As he turned around, the officer saw he had a syringe tangled in the back of his long hair. Nestlerode said it must have gotten stuck in his hair while he was in his bedroom.
He was then taken into custody. A careful search was done to ensure he had no other syringes on him. When he was asked if he had any additional drugs or paraphernalia, he said he had nothing else.
On the way to the jail, Nestlerode reportedly cursed and swore at the troopers for the entire trip, threatening a lawsuit. He did not ask where his daughter was or if she was alright.
Nestlerode was searched again by jail staff prior to him being admitted to the jail. They located a small bag of marijuana tucked in his pants pocket.
An interview with the child’s mother confirmed Nestlerode was left solely in charge of the child while she was at work.