Bemidji man pleads guilty to abuse of six-week-old infant

A Bemidji man pleaded guilty to malicious punishment of a child causing great bodily harm in a plea hearing Thursday.

Twenty-two-year-old Levi Knutson’s infant son was brought to the emergency room in April 2020 with several fractures to his arms and legs.

During the plea hearing, Knutson admitted to causing a dozen fractures to the arms, legs, collarbones and ribs of his six-week-old son over multiple incidences.

Knutson testified that on at least one occasion, he heard and felt a bone break, stating that he treated his child like a “Stretch Armstrong doll.”

Knutson’s sentencing is scheduled for June 1.


Larissa Donovan is the News Director for the stations of Paul Bunyan Broadcasting and has been, almost without interruption, since Election Day 2016. She covers all the beats in north-central Minnesota, such as local government, crime, education, environment and social issues. She studied communications at Bemidji State University. You can follow along with Larissa's live tweets of meetings and events on Twitter!


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