NEW LONDON — A Mashuntucket man who gave his 13-year-old daughter bruises and rug burns when he dragged her through school has been convicted of risk of injury to a minor and faces up to 10 years in prison.
The Day of New London reports that a six-member jury deliberated for about four hours before convicting 35-year-old Mark Thornton on Monday. He was acquitted of second-degree breach of peace.
Prosecutors said the man dragged the eighth-grader by the wrists and ankles from outside a classroom to the main office in September 2015 after she refused to leave with him for a counseling appointment.
Thornton testified in his own defense that he was in “desperate straits” because the girl kept running away.
Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 14.
